The Moral Highground
by The Blue Engine
Summary: Trevor has big dreams of helping society, and hopes to get there through charity organization Pokemon Catchers. However, his dreams are dashed when Trevor discovers the company's dark secret and is forced into crime to further the organization. As they plan to ruin Kanto, Trevor questions where to draw the line between the greater good and terrorism.
1. Cape Brink

**Hey! I hope you guys enjoy this story. I began posting it on Bulbagarden's URPG, so I thought I would share it here as it's gotten good feedback over there :) Hope you all enjoy as it progresses.**

**Cape Brink**

Ever since I had been thirteen years old, I had wanted to be a Sevii Pokemon Catcher.

My name is Trevor, Trevor Archer to be precise. Growing up, my friends had always wanted to be the usual professions: a gym leader, member of the Elite 4, top coordinator. I had wanted to be a trainer as well, and had temporarily gone on a journey. I managed to earn the Rainbow and Volcano Badges, but struggled against the others. I returned home after three years, a severely injured Charizard and ill Vaporeon in my PokeBalls.

When I arrived home, expecting my mother to hug me, expecting my father to tell me off for failing, expecting to get teased by my friends, I found my family in despair. I quickly learnt my nine year old brother, Eric, had been diagnosed with cancer, and the doctor had given him only a few months to live. There was nothing I could do to cheer anything up. I had gone to the Pokemon Centre, wondering if the nurse could fix my Charizard's cracked wing, when I found the answer. A poster had been advertising a new charity group: The Pokemon Catchers. They caught Pokemon for sick children, adults and bed ridden elderly to cheer them up. I quickly dialled the number, and within forty eight hours, a tall, pretty woman arrived. She briskly caught a cute Phanpy with a Poliwag for Eric, who was over the moon. Thankfully it was free, and the woman went off on her way. And six months later, my brother was still alive, and within two years, he was fully cured. And it was all thanks to Phanpy.

My mother now donated to the group once a month and my father helped organize a marathon up Mt Ember every year to raise funds. I never did much, except help with party preparation and door-to-door fundraising. So that is why I vowed to become a Pokemon Catcher, so I could do something good in the world. I want to see people smile when I passed them their PokeBall with a huge start on it. I wanted to be able to pose in photos, help promote this great cause, and make myself well known

I wasn't going to become well known sitting behind a desk.

Fifteen years on and here I was: taller, fitter, happier, but with not much to make myself well known. I was sitting behind a mahogany reception desk, with a flat screen computer in front of me, filing cabinets behind, and a lot of stationary around me. The old Pokemon Catcher's building, which had been a one storey hut, and it had grown into a four storey complex on Boon Island, with many more offices around Kanto, Johto, and soon Hoenn and Sinnoh. I was currently on the ground floor, with the junior catcher offices, staff room and storage room behind me. The lobby was generally full with worried mothers and concerned fathers, but today it was empty. No one seemed to get sick on a Wednesday, I noticed. Half the catchers were out though, and the rest were preparing for their catching trips later on. The receptionist had fallen ill, so I was filling in. It was rather tedious work, and I was beginning to fall asleep.

"Vapor." A soft cry came from my feet. I looked down and saw my Vaporeon, awakening from his own nap.

"Hello there." I said, and patted her on the head. Vaporeon had become my main Pokemon after Charizard's injury, and she loved being outside of her PokeBall.

"Por Eon Vap." He explained, and moved towards the water fountain. I watched and laughed as he leapt up, pressed the tab, pouring himself a drink.

"Is that sanitary?" A voice said from behind me. I gasped and turned in my chair: a middle aged woman with greying hair and ragged clothing stood in front of the desk. I recognised her face, and realised she had been a nurse at the Pokemon Centre.

"Sorry, it gets a bit hot under the desk." I explained, trying to sound friendly, but the women raised an eyebrow. "Anyway, what can I do you for?"

"My nephew has broken his leg and the doctor said it will take months to heal." The women explained. "I would like to get him a special treat, and I hear there is a rare bird Pokemon flying around." I nodded, as we had all been told about it: a Taillow from the Hoenn region had flown down to Boon Island. Everyone was excited about it, though no one had been able to find it, except for a fortunate hiking group.

"A Taillow would be a perfect capture." I said with a smile, though I had huge doubts: how could I possibly catch such a rare Pokemon when I was still just a junior catcher? But we couldn't let the customers doubt us, so I put on a smile and tapped the order into the computer.

"Also, my father-in-law recently passed away." The woman added. "My husband has been rather down about it, and he just loves to go swimming. Could I request a Poliwag as well?" I smiled and nodded, but was secretly annoyed. The Pokemon Catchers had expanded, and now dealt with all types of misery and pain. A broken leg and a dead father-in-law seemed a bit uncertain, and I couldn't help but ask.

"Excuse me, but we require proof." I said. "Do you have a death certificate, doctors note, obituary?" The women gasped.

"I don't carry things like that around!" She shrieked. But I looked into her eyes, and saw a guilty, shift in there. Footsteps suddenly sounded from nearby, and I felt Vaporeon rush back towards me. I looked over, though I already knew who was coming.

Isabella Frost was true to her name. She had a hard, cold face, long dyed blue hair, and wore pale blue makeup. She always wore an ocean blue dress suit around the office, but worn camouflage tracksuit on the odd occasions she went out in the field. Everyone called her Frostbite due to her cold, bitchy attitude, but I found her rather attractive. I had first met her when I was thirteen, after all.

"I heard someone yelling." Isabella said stiffly. "What is going on?"

"This man accused me of lying about my nephew and father-in-law!" The ex-nurse wailed. Isabella turned towards me, her pencil thin eyebrows raised.  
>"Is this true, Mr Archer?"<p>

"Yes mam, but-"

"No buts!" Isabella shouted. "Please take the order form, and your Vaporeon, and go and catch her Pokemon!" Her words came out like a whip, and I instantly leapt up.

"Come on Vaporeon, let's go!" I said, and rushed off to get changed from my casual work clothes to catching gear. Vaporeon shot Isabella the evils before following after me. I could feel Isabella watching us, and I felt a shiver go all the way down my spine.

I was glad to be getting out of the ice cave.

Twenty minutes later, I was off on the road.

I was wearing the standard outfit for Pokemon Catchers: khaki camouflage gear, from the hat down to the leather shoes. I had six Poke-Catch-Mega Balls attached to along my belt, and a long metal rod on my back. The outfit was one of the coolest things about the job, and when people saw the logo (a capital P and C in rainbow colours, with a picture of a P-C-M-Ball below), I always got a friendly wave.

My mode of transport was an open-topped jeep, painted in dark green with the logo on the sides. The wind blew through my brown hair, and Vaporeon sat besides me, his fins getting blown as well. Several customers walking towards the building smiled and waved, and both Vaporeon and I waved back, him using his tail. It was a short drive towards Cape Brink, but we must have received a dozen waves: it seemed that it was going to get busy for Frostbite soon. It was difficult to stay attracted to her: she was ten years older, a bit of a cow and didn't seem to like me very much, but she was hot, and who could deny that?

"Vapor!" Vaporeon exclaimed, and pointed over the side, down a hill. I turned and saw the expansive pool of water that was Cape Brink. The sun was shining down on it like a spotlight, showing Poliwag and Psyduck splashing and having a fun time. A waterfall was pouring into the lake, and I knew it was downhill now. A sign up ahead said "45 Degree Drop Ahead" and I gulped: I wasn't the best driver when it came to managing steep hills.

"Brace yourself Vaporeon." I warned, and the car suddenly titled. The two of us yelled as we raced down the hill, the car bumping and bouncing over holes and rocks. I brought my foot off the accelerator, but it didn't slow us down. People's heads turned towards us, and a couple watching Cape Brink screamed and jumped out of the way. As we reached the bottom, I flawed the brakes. The car spun around, Vaporeon bumped into me, and his tail smashed into the steering wheel. The airbag burst out, squishing Vaporeon against me, and the car came to a halt, right by the water. Vaporeon bit down on the airbag, bursting it and freeing us. My shoulder hurt a bit, but I had to carry on if I wanted to please old Frostbite. I opened the door, letting Vaporeon leap out first, and then climbed out. No one dare tried to steal a Pokemon Catcher car, and one man even came and stood guard. I nodded my thanks, and then jumped down a slight ledge to reach the lake front.

Lots of Pokemon turned towards me, intrigued by my sudden appearance, along with Vaporeon's. He smiled and beamed at them, and many of the water Pokemon smiled back. I used my training to find the perfect Poliwag: we had to find the happiest Pokemon, the one that would cheer the customers up the most. At the front of the pack, I saw a Poliwag, its mouth open wider than anyone else's, and its tail splashing the water happily.

"That's the one Vaporeon!" I cried, and pointed towards it. The Pokemon in the cape stopped smiling, and they looked rather confused. Then, Vaporeon leapt forwards. The smiling Poliwag gasped and dived underwater, but Vaporeon leapt in after. I unhooked the metallic rod, and pointed it towards the water. Vaporeon appeared, his tail thrashing, and the Poliwag clamped in his mouth with Bite. The Poliwag's friends were appearing, getting firing Water Guns and using DoubleSlap furiously.

"Vaporeon, get it onto the ground!" I shouted. Vaporeon spat the Poliwag onto the ground, who landed at my feet.

"Poli!" It wailed, and tried to flee, but I pressed a button on the rod. A green beam shot out and struck Poliwag. Its muscles seized up, slowing it down. Vaporeon was trying to get onto dry land, but Psyducks were slashing at him.

"Hang in there buddy!" I yelled, and threw a P-C-M Ball at Poliwag. But before I could see it get sucked inside, Vaporeon fired Surf to blast the Psyducks away. The huge wave knocked me aside, sending my crashing towards a rock. I was covered in water, barely able to breathe.

How was this suppose to change the world?


	2. Ruin Valley

**Ruin Valley**

It took me a while to get dry again. I had too much hair to dry it properly, and I needed to get Vaporeon to suck it up using Water Absorb. While he did that, I quickly changed out of my wet camo gear and put on a dry set I carried with me. Most people probably would have been embarrassed about stripping off in public, but I had to please Frostbite, which meant going quickly. I tossed my wet clothes into the trunk, and caught a glimpse of my body in the water: semi muscular, T-shirt tan and a scattering of hair on my chest. Some girls walking past giggled, and I couldn't help but blush, and quickly put my dry uniform on. Vaporeon, who was wobbling on the edge of the car door, finished siphoning of the water in my hair.

"Vapor!" He announced, and I smirked as I finished buttoning up my shirt.

"Cheers Vaporeon." I replied. "I appreciate that." And I patted him on the head, and he nuzzled my hand appreciatively. I was about to get in my car when I gasped, and quickly dashed over to the grass. Lying there simply was the silver rod. I quickly picked it up and pressed a green button. There was a crackle of electricity at the top, and then a small ball of red energy formed.

"Yes!" I cried happily, as the orb meant I had successfully captured Poliwag inside the Mega Ball. I looked down and noticed several Poliwag glaring up at me, and took that as my cue to leave.

"Come on Vaporeon, we better head off then!" I said quickly, and ran towards the car before I got bombarded with Water Gun's. But before I could start the engine, my company cell phone began to ring. It had an annoying, pitchy ring tone, and it played for two minutes if I didn't answer. Vaporeon gave me a look practically telling me to pick it up.

"Alright, alright, I will!" I snapped, and pressed the green answer button.

"Hello there Mr Archer." It was Frostbite, her voice sending chills down my spine even over the phone.

"Hello Miss Frost." I said with false chirpiness.

"There has been a change of plans, Mr Archer." Isabel continued, and she sounded more bitter than normal. "Our lovely guest, Ms Williams, has requested that the Taillow is changed to a Yanma." I groaned, and expected a telling off, but Frostbite didn't care. Everyone was annoyed when requests were suddenly changed, as it stuffed everything up.

"One of the company speedboats is waiting for you down at the dock." Frostbite continued. "Please be prompt." And then she cut off the call. I sighed and looked down at Vaporeon.

"Wanna go and hit the seas?"

The Pokemon Catchers owned three boats: sleek white vessels, with bedrooms, kitchens, living areas, and comfortable seats on the deck. There were the Pokemon Catcher logo on both sides and the roof, and was practically an advertisement. But I loved going on it: it was twice the size of my apartment and had much better stuff. Vaporeon and I lounged on the leather sofa and switched the television on. I sent my Pidgeotto out as well, who ignore the television and pecked at some old magazines.

"Ah, this is the life!" I called to my Pokemon, and slid into a comfortable position on the couch. I shut my eyes, hoping to catch a few minutes nap while we travelled towards Fortune Island. However, the rocking of the ocean on the boat was soothing, and I felt myself drift off…

BAM!

I awoke with a start, and found myself lying on the floor.

"Pidge!" Pidgeotto was calling, fluttering around above me.

"Why did I fall off?" I groaned. There was laughter, and I looked up through the glass doors. The overweight captain, Ronald, was standing on the deck, rubbing a dirty hand through his curly black hair.

"We've reached the Water Path." He explained, still laughing. "I stopped a bit suddenly, so I guess you rolled off." I faked some laughter as well, but was really annoyed. I stood up, and glared at Vaporeon, who giggling as well, and double checked I had everything: my phone, the silver rod, five of the Poke-Catch-Mega-Balls, and a fresh change of clothing, just in case some more Pokemon decided to attack me. Vaporeon and Pidgeotto followed me as I walked out onto the polished deck.

Ronald had stopped in the middle of the Water Path, a water route in the middle of the Fortune Island District. Jagged grey rocks were everywhere, sticking out like teeth from the deep blue ocean. Swimmers were splashing about in the water, while some trainers travelled using their Pokemon to float on. These ranged from Poliwrath and Politoed, to Gyarados and Blastoise. A huge grey mountain was right in front, towering over people and Pokemon.

"I suppose we better get going, we have to be back soon." I said.

"Pidge Pidge." Pidgeotto said, and fluttered above my head. She would fly above us and scout out for Yanma.

"Ready Vaporeon?" Vaporeon nodded, and then jumped off the side of the deck. Ronald and I stared over the side, and watched as Vaporeon disappeared under the waves. Then, only a few seconds later, a huge wave rose up out of the water, with Vaporeon standing on top. It came up to the deck, and I casually climbed onto my friend.

"Good luck, you have half an hour to be back." Ronald told me, and then walked back towards the cabin.

"Onwards towards the Ruin Valley!" I called, and my two Pokemon cheered. Pidgeotto flew ahead, and Vaporeon guided the wave back down to the water, but still rocketed ahead towards the earth brown mountain in the distance.

Vaporeon and I soon reached a set of natural brown steps, carved out of the earth. Vaporeon leapt out of the water, and I clung to his fins as we landed. The path ahead was rocky and there was no actual concrete path to follow. The towering mountain was still there, and I could see a huge green field in the distance, surrounded with more mountains: Ruin Valley.

"Any sign of Pidgeotto?" I asked Vaporeon. Vaporeon looked up into the skies, and nodded after a few seconds.

"Vapor!" He said, and pointed upwards with his tail. I inclined my head in that direction, and saw Pidgeotto soaring above Ruin Valley, calling out to us.  
>"I suppose she has found some Yanma for us to catch." I said, grinning happily at Vaporeon. The two of us began to run down the path, our feet crunching the stones beneath us. A group of hikers came past, and they waved jollily at us, and their Geodude and Graveller did the same. I briefly waved back, but I had to keep moving. It had taken about five minutes to travel from the boat to the stairs, and it would take a few minutes to reach Pidgeotto. Sand and dirt was kicked into the sky by our feet, and Vaporeon was beginning to look a bit dirty. A flock of Spearow flew overhead, screeching loudly at us. I had never liked Spearow or Fearow, not after an unfortunate incident with Charizard. I moved away from beneath them, half expecting them to start dive bombing us. But I wasn't paying attention, and ended up tripping over Vaporeon.<p>

"Eon!" He snapped, but I couldn't hear properly: I was rolling, head over heels, down another staircase, though this one was covered with grass, not rock.

"OW!" I wailed with each step, and tried to avoid breaking my neck or back. I landed in a heap at the bottom, my face hitting a pile of mud. I heard Vaporeon twitter behind me, and groaned into the mud.

"It's not funny!" I huffed, as I got up and wiped the mud off my face. But then I froze.

The Ruin Valley was absolutely amazing! Mountains surrounded the entire area, but their height was no match for several Onix that came past, the top of their heads stretching over the cliffs. A large hill was in the middle, surrounded with a dazzling blue moat of water. There were fields of long and short grass coinciding with rocks, dirt and sand. Marill were giggling and bouncing in the water, while a sole Slowpoke happily floated past. The flock of Spearow dived down into the longer grass, hopefully searching for food. It seemed like a wonderful place, and I felt guilty to be exploiting it's beauty.

"Pidge Pidgeotto!" Vaporeon and I turned, and saw Pidgeotto diving out of the sky, smiling happily at us.

"Did you find a Yanma?" I asked eagerly.

"O-to!" Pidgeotto replied, nodding, and flapped her wings and took off again. Vaporeon ran off, and I struggled to keep up with my two Pokemon. Both of them were moving at incredible speeds, and I thought back to a training session Frostbite had arranged, trying to bring up the fitness levels of all Pokemon Catcher Pokemon. Vaporeon and Pidgeotto had taken part, and had learnt how to become agile on land, water and the air respectively. However, I had missed the last training session for Pokemon Catchers, and had been out of breath before I had fallen down the stairs: the extra run wasn't helping.

"Vaporeon Vap!" Vaporeon shouted out, presumably trying to get me to hurry. I was too tired to reply, but was there within thirty seconds, landing on my knees beside a pointed rock. Pidgeotto was perched on the rock, with Vaporeon beside.

"Where… is it?" I puffed. Pidgeotto pointed with her left wing. I peered over the long grass, and I saw a Yanma, buzzing above the grass, and speeding from side to side. It had big green eyes, a red body and white wings. It seemed rather pleasant, and didn't seem to want to be disturbed, but I had to catch it.

"Vaporeon, get in there…. and use… Aurora Beam!" I whispered, still trying to catch my breath. Vaporeon nodded, and leapt forwards into the grass. Yanma turned around, and gasped.

"Yan!" He yelled, and waved his wings. A SonicBoom shot out before Vaporeon even opened his mouth, and I gasped as he was blasted backwards. Yanma turned and began to flee, but I couldn't allow that. Pidgeotto read my thoughts, and then flew quickly forwards. Yanma sensed the pursuit and turned.

"MAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Yanma yelled, and fired a Supersonic. Pidgeotto closed her winds and ducked down, and then flew up, her wings glowing in an Aerial Ace. It slashed across Yanma's chest, blasting him backwards into the sky. But Yanma used this to his advantage, and flew upwards.

"Hit it with a Heat Wave!" I yelled.

"PIDGE!" Pidgeotto yelled, and exhaled orange flames. They raced up and struck Yanma, roasting him alive. The bug began to fall back down to Earth, but I knew he wasn't unconscious yet.

"Pidgeotto, prepare for Fly!" I called up. "And Vaporeon, you use Surf!" Vaporeon leapt up and nodded, and raced over towards the moat. As Yanma came closer, I pulled out the metal rod. I pressed the button, and Yanma was hit by the electricity, tensing up his muscles. He growled at me and flapped his wings, blasting me backwards with a SonicBoom. I screamed as I smashed into the rock, and Yanma flew forwards to tackle me. But then I heard the familiar sound of crashing waves, and smiled up at Yanma. The bug was confused for a few seconds, but then he saw the Surf flying towards them, flooding the green fields and turning them to mud. Vaporeon was riding on top, and smiled at me as the attack hit Yanma, forcing him underwater. I allowed the water to hit my face, and wiped some of the mud off. Vaporeon ran over to me, and pointed over at Yanma. He was lying on the ground, twitching a bit.

"In about three seconds, he's ours." I smirked, and pulled out a Poke-Catch-Mega-Ball. There was a flash from the sky, and Pidgeotto soared back down. Vaporeon and I shielded our eyes, but listened to Yanma's last cry as Pidgeotto struck him. I threw the PCMBall, and opened my eyes. Pidgeotto was beside the ball, with Yanma twitching inside, trying to break free. But then there was a red flash, signalling capture. Vaporeon and Pidgeotto cheered, and I bent down and picked the ball up, smiling. But then I looked at my watch and realised the time: we had ten minutes to rush back to Ronald and the boat.

"Come on guys, no time to celebrate!" I shouted, and turned and sped off as quickly as possible towards the Water Path.

It was getting dark as the boat pulled into the dock. Dark clouds had formed overhead, blocking out the sun as it set. I watched the weather report on the boat, and it said that a thunder storm was expected very soon. This wouldn't be good, as I drove a scooter home and would get completely soaked!

"I spoke to Frostbite on the phone." Ronald said as I climbed onto the dock with Vaporeon. "She needs you to speed there quickly. The woman she is dealing with isn't being very patient."

"I pissed the woman off this morning, so I am sure she has come to expect that from me." I laughed, before biding Ronald farewell and racing towards the car. I put the roof up, not wanting to get rained on, and once Vaporeon was in, I flawed it.

The path up towards headquarters was bare, and I presumed people had gone home for the night, not wanting to watch the cape in the middle of a storm. This meant I could go as fast as possible, and reached the building within six minutes. Not daring to annoy Frostbite with more lateness, I scrambled out of the car, nearly leaving Vaporeon behind, and ran inside. Frostbite and the woman were standing there, and looked like they had just paused in an argument.  
>"Well, do you have them?" The older woman snapped, her hand outstretched to receive her charity Pokemon. I reached into my pocket, planning to pull them out, but Frostbite grabbed them off me first.<p>

"Mrs Lewis here does not have the correct information on her documents." She snapped. "Until she brings us the correct information on her family members conditions, we cannot give her these Pokemon!"

"THEY ARE MINE!" Mrs Lewis yelled. She reached into her bag and pulled out her wallet. She pulled out nearly a thousand PokeDollars and thrust them into Isabel's hand. "Take it, take it all!" She screeched. "I just need to have those Pokemon!" Frostbite stared at the cash that in her hand, and I looked at it with greed. I didn't know how Mrs Lewis would have got it all, but it was a lot! Frostbite stared at the money, and tossed the PCM Balls over.

"We don't usually do this, but if you insist, I must bow down." Vaporeon and I exchanged looks of pure shock: Frostbite had never acted like this before. But Mrs Lewis was crying with joy, and gave me a quick hug.

"Please take a seat and we can sign the documents." Frostbite said, and led Mrs Lewis over to the couch. "Mr Archer, please get changed and you can go home."

"Yes Miss Frost." I said, and turned and walked towards the staffroom. But I quickly realised Vaporeon was moving slowly, and turned to see him staring suspiciously over at Frostbite.

"Leave her alone, I am sure she isn't doing anything wrong!" I whispered, and nudged Vaporeon forwards. But as we walked, I noticed a strange look in Frostbite's eyes: delight. For the first time since I'd known her, she was smiling. And what's more, lightning flashed outside, and the storm began to fall. But in the split second where there had been light outside, I saw something.

Someone was fidgeting around Mrs Lewis' car.


	3. Kindle Road

**Kindle Road**

By the time I had changed back into my normal clothes, the weather had gotten worse: thunder was echoing across the Sevii Islands, and lightning lit up the darkening sky every few minutes.  
>Vaporeon and I stood at the edge of the staff garage, my red Vespa in between us.<br>"Ok Vaporeon, I just want you to try and draw the water away from me," I explained. Vaporeon nodded, and I grinned broadly. Whenever it rained too badly, Vaporeon's Water Absorb was able to draw the rain towards him, and he could then dry me off.  
>"Alright then, let's go!" I said anxiously, and put a black helmet on. Vaporeon leapt onto my knees, and sat there comfortably, not at all worried about the rain. I started the engine up, nudged the accelerator, and began to roll out into the jet-black night.<br>The first thing I could think of was that I was glad I had put a raincoat on.  
>It felt like someone had turned a tap on right above my head, and water was now pounding against my helmet, smashing against my legs and instantly soaking my pants. My vision was impaired, and I could barely see a few feet in front of me. I turned the headlight on, providing me with some light, but all I could see was the grass becoming a bog, and mini lakes of rainwater forming on the tarmac.<br>"Good luck Vaporeon!" I shouted, as thunder echoed overhead, and I began moving off into the night.  
>Lightning flashed brightly overhead, and the electric current managed to light up the way ahead for a few seconds: it showed I was nearing the hill, where I would have to be careful, and alerted me to a huge puddle taking up half the road. It also showed something else in front of me: a car.<br>"Was that Mrs Lewis' car?" I asked Vaporeon. He looked up, but the lightning had disappeared, and the only sign of the car was two dim yellow lights from the back of the car.  
>"Por Vap Eon," Vaporeon said, shrugging, and went back to lying down. I just nodded, and focused back on the road. The Vespa splashed through the puddle, sending mini waves spraying onto the grass. I laughed with childish joy, and remembered the days when my father would do the same thing, driving through huge puddles to make waves, just for my amusement, along with Eric's. Those days had been much easier, and I missed the easy times when I could lie on the trampoline all day, watching the Pidgey and Spearow flying over head, only moving to eat and excrete. Childhood had been so easy, and I felt envious of my eight year old self, who had been so young, careful, and stressless….<br>"VAPOR!" Vaporeon cried, and pointed with his tail. I snapped out of my daydream, and growled as the rain began to affect me again. I looked around through the torrent, trying to see what Vaporeon was concerned about. Then, I noticed two things shaking and moving violently.  
>"That's… that's the lights from the car!" I gasped. For some reason, Mrs Lewis had lost control of her car, and it seemed to be spinning all over the place.<br>"Shit, this can't be good," I mumbled, and stepped on the accelerator, so my Vespa drew closer. Suddenly, I felt a sensation in my stomach, and realised we had begun to travel downhill. I quickly recovered from the shock, but my Vespa had slipped a bit. As I got control, Vaporeon steadied himself, but his feet jabbed my upper legs.  
>"Watch it, I'm sensitive in that area!" I snapped. Vaporeon smirked, but then we both looked back towards the car. Something strange was happening with the car, and I wanted to know what. Suddenly, I saw the lights completely disappear. I thought something horrible had happened, but then I noticed that the car was spinning around, sending water and mud splashing.<br>"Vaporeon, maybe you should use an attack to stop them, like Aurora Beam!" I yelled, seriously concerned for the safety of Mrs Lewis. Vaporeon nodded and stood up on my legs, and faced out towards the car.  
>Suddenly, another bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating the way ahead. And what I saw shocked me.<br>Mrs Lewis' car was spinning at exactly 360 degrees, like it was on some sort of deranged roundabout. The rain was pleting the front and side windows, but I could just make out Mrs Lewis' face, and could see that she was screaming, yelling for someone to come to her rescue. She looked more shocked than I had ever seen another human being look. I waved my arms, trying to attract her attention, but then I noticed something worse: the car had slipped through a muddy patch, and was now sliding towards the edge of the road, right above Cape Brink.  
>"VAPOREON, FREEZE THE WAY IN FRONT!" I screamed, as the lightning was replaced with thunder.<br>"Poreon!" Vaporeon cried, and a small rainbow coloured ball formed. I hoped we could freeze the way in time, and I focused on the lights. I hoped things would be fine, but… one second they were there, the next they weren't.  
>"SHIT!" I yelled, and stamped on the brakes. Unfortunately for us, I braked just as we went through the mud. The Vespa skidded, and Vaporeon and I yelled out as it tilted over. My face landed in the mud, though it was just as dark as the cloudy skies. I heard Vaporeon land alongside, and then I heard a huge crash.<br>"The car… I think… it crashed," I explained. I had been winded when I had landed, and was out of breath as I stood up, and rushed, hunched over, towards the edge. There was another flash of lightning, and I was able to find the edge of the cliff. Vaporeon and I looked down, our faces glum.  
>Cape Brink was shaking violently, huge waves and ripples splashing up against the sides. And even though we were far up, I could see a little light flickering thanks to the lightning, but then it died.<br>The car had plunged off the cliff, and, only with Mrs Lewis, had sunken to the bottom of the Cape.  
>"Oh my god, she must be dead," I whispered to Vaporeon, and she too nodded gravely. As the thunder rumbled overhead, we raced back to the Vespa, which was lying in a puddle, covered in mud, and I started it up again, planning on heading back to the Pokemon Catchers Headquarters and make sure this got reported….<p>

_One week later…._

Once again, I found myself running through the Ruin Valley, the grass tickling my legs, my feet pounding the stone, and with Vaporeon galloping at my side and Pidgeotto soaring gallantly overhead.  
>It had been a whole week since I'd been here, which meant it was a week since Mrs Lewis' horrific crash.<br>After I had got back to Headquarters, I was pleased to see Frostbite was still there. She looked concerned at my horrified expression, and allowed me to explain what had happened. Isabel called the emergency services, and, once the storm had cleared up, a rescue boat was sent out. I watched from the top of the Cape, along with several police officers, as two powerful Tentacruel picked the car up, and lifted it onto a barge. Later that day, a police officer appeared on television, explaining what had happened to the public. It soon became knowledge that I had witnessed it, and I had a lot of people coming up to me, either offering to talk about how I felt, or asking my for the details. I couldn't take the pressure, but thankfully Frostbite had put me on a lot of missions, so I had been with those.  
>Today's first capture would have been my fifteen one this week: a well known scientist required a Natu to gift to his wife, but was too busy with an experiment to catch it himself. So Robert had picked me up, and in a similar process to Yanma, I ended up in the Ruin Valley.<br>"I have heard from the others that Natu are hard to catch, so be careful," I warned my Pokemon. Pidgeotto chirped, and then sped forwards, her eyes focused on uncovering the Psychic bird. I tried to catch up with her, though I was careful not to speed down the staircase like last week. Vaporeon ran alongside, keeping his head up high as he searched, and I knew she was focused on this find.  
>But I wasn't.<br>My mind kept drifting back to Mrs Lewis and the car crash: the flash of lightning… her look of pure horror…. the dying lights…. the sound of thunder…. It was all too much for me. I had arranged to see a therapist, but there wasn't much time with all of my new missions, and I didn't quite know how it would help. Would rethinking about it make things better, or just make everything worse? What I needed was a big distraction, something that could take my mind of this for a while.

"Vaporeon Vap Vap!" Vaporeon's cry brought me back to Earth, and I looked at him. But he was running forwards, flattening grass and sending Spearow flying in fright. A Natu was perched on top of rock surface, and I was surprised at how small it was. I was expecting some huge, horrible looking bird, but Natu looked like it could fit in my hand, and it had a cute, simplistic look about it. But I could see Vaporeon and Pidgeotto looking ready, and I nodded at them. The two had had a special training session this morning, and they now had the right moves to use against the Tiny Bird.  
>"Vaporeon use your Aurora Beam, and Pidgeotto, you use Ominous Wind!" I shouted, and then reached into my bag. As I pulled out a grey circular disc, which was the size of my chest, the Pokemon attacked.<br>"Pidge Pidge!" Pidgeotto cried, as black energy engulfed her. Than, she furiously flapped her wings, sending the black energy off as a powerful gust of wind. The Natu, who was sitting there harmlessly, didn't have any time to react, and was suddenly blasted backwards by the attack.  
>"Vapor!" Vaporeon said, and fired the multi coloured, icy beam at Natu, and the two attacks managed to hold Natu in place.<br>"Perfect, now move in!" I shouted, and I threw the disc into the air. Lights flashed on the bottom as the disc spun, and then it froze in mid air. Suddenly, sixteen thin pieces of metal shot out from the sides, with flat arrowheads at the bottom. Vaporeon and Pidgeotto moved in closer, and I leapt in as the metal hit the ground, managing to hold. More metal shot out, criss-crossing across and making a barrier. It was the Anti-teleportation Barrier System, or ABS for short, and the metal rods produced a powerful electric current that prevented Pokemon to leave the confines of the barrier.  
>"Natuuuuu!" The Tiny Bird squealed, and I looked over at it as it flashed white, blinding Vaporeon and Pidgeotto and preventing their attacks. But the white light quickly disappeared, and the Natu flew around the barrier rapidly, looking thoroughly annoyed.<br>"Looks like my assumption was right!" I boomed happily, as I had rightly thought that the Natu would know Teleport. The Natu was looking very annoyed at us, and its head began to glow pink.  
>"That's Zen Headbutt," I pondered aloud. "Vaporeon, use Bite when it gets close to you! And Pidgeotto use Ominous Wind again!" Natu suddenly darted forwards, streaks of pink energy coming off her head.<br>"Por-ee," Vaporeon said, and opened his mouth wide. Natu smashed into Vaporeons teeth, making his eyes narrow, and he bit down hard. Natus body seized up in pain from the bite, right before the Ominous Wind was fired again. Vaporeon dug his feet into the ground, preventing himself from being blown away. I examined the situation, and thought of the moves that the two knew.  
>"Let's end this spectacularly!" Vaporeon use Shadow Ball than Aurora Beam, and Pidgeotto use Ominous Wind than Air Slash." A ball of dark purple and black energy formed inside Vaporeon's mouth, and slightly overlapped Natu. As the ball was fired, sending a screaming Natu with it, Pidgeotto released more Ominous Wind. The wind hit the Shadow Ball, causing it to explode. Black energy bounced around the barrier, effectively trapping Natu in the centre.<br>"Oto Pidge Pidgeotto O!" Pidgeotto said, impressed with my plan. She summoned up some wind, which formed a light blue ball in front of her. She whacked it furiously with her wing, causing it to fly towards Natu. Vaporeon also blasted out the Aurora Beam, and the cold it produced managed to freeze the black energy.  
>"Natu Tu Tuuuu!" Natu whimpered, and I felt a pinge of guilt in my stomach. But the Air Slash hit, and it exploded, sending wind which shattered the frozen black energy. I pulled a PCM Ball from my pocket and threw it. Vaporeon and Pidgeotto came to my side, and we watched as the ball landed in the rippling grass, shaking as Natu fought to escape. But there was a flash, and I smiled with relief.<br>"Great work everyone," I said, and patted my two Pokemon. Suddenly, there was a ringing sound, and I growled as I pulled my cell phone out and grabbed the PCM Ball.  
>"Hello?" I asked, trying not to snap.<br>"Trevor, we need you over at Kindle Path straight away," A voice, which I recognised as Frostbite's, said.  
>"Why, what's happened?" I asked, and saw Vaporeon and Pidgeotto exchange looks, so I guessed I sounded concerned.<br>"A wild Machop and Mankey are causing issues for the trainers there," Frostbite explained. "If you can get there straight away, it will be most appreciated. Robert has been called, and he is ready and waiting in the Water Path. Good luck," and with that, the call ended. I looked at my phone, and I was highly mystified at the way Frostbite had spoken: it sounded like she was explaining her new curtains, not warning me about what was coming up. But I figured I might as well get on with it, as the thoughts of Mrs Lewis were coming back, and I didn't want to dwell on it.  
>"Come on then you two, we have a new mission," I told Vaporeon and Pidgeotto, and led them in running off.<p>

I could see smoke rising as we neared the beachfront.  
>Vaporeon and I stood at the front of the boat, whichever bit it was called, and stared forwards. A rocky mountain that housed a famous hot springs and a cliff was all I could see, but rising from several rocks, which we would be passing through, I could see smoke, and I knew it had to do with the Pokemon. Mount Ember towered over us in the distance, but I only had a few seconds to admire it's deep grey beauty before the boat swerved, and I nearly fell over. Pidgeotto, who had perched on the cabin, fluttered down in fright.<br>"Sorry Trev." Robert boomed over the megaphone.  
>"Just give me more of a heads up next time," I yelled back, and gripped the handrail as we moved through the rocks. "This could be a tough one guys, so lets get ready and try and kick some ass!"<br>"Poreon!"  
>"Oto Pidgey!" My two Pokemon cried, and we all looked forwards as the boat moved through the waters.<br>The water was getting shallower, and we could see the sand through the glowing blue ocean. But our attention was drawn towards the beach front: in front of a huge mountain, and between a grassy field, the cliffs and the hot springs was a huge expanse of beautiful, golden sand, and I could imagine it being crowded with swimmers, large families with small children, and body builders, all of them wanting to just have fun in their own way there.  
>But the beach was empty, except for about three men in white robes with black belts, shouting orders into smoke that was covering their Pokemon. A young couple were running into the hot springs, and I exchanged concerned looks with Vaporeon and Pidgeotto. Bits of metal were strewn over the beach, and I figured the Machop and Mankey had blown something up. Bolts of electricity were coming from the smoke, and I was getting very concerned.<br>"Let's get going! Surf and Fly, go!" I shouted, and the Pokemon nodded. Pidgeotto shot up into the air, and was soon out of sight. Vaporeon leapt off the side of the boat, just as Robert cut the engine.  
>"I am waiting to help if you need it," Robert said over the megaphone.<p>

"Cheers," I called back, and then leapt over the side. My leather boots landed onto Vaporeon's wet, scaly back, and they slid slightly, but I grabbed onto my Pokemon's fins, and stayed on his back as he controlled a wave, sending it crashing onto the beach.

"VAPOR!" Vaporeon cried, and leapt into the skies as the Surf struck. There was a shout from the smoke, which became covered with the wave.  
>"Good job," I told Vaporeon, and jumped off his back. Both of us landed on the beach, our feet sinking slightly in the wet sand, and the water receding back over our ankles.<br>"Por Eon Eon," Vaporeon whispered, and pointed with his tail forwards, and I felt my proud look at her disappear, and stared in front of us.  
>The two Pokemon Frostbite had warned me about were standing there, and I felt a shiver down my spine like I had never felt before. The Machop was standing closer, and it seemed taller, stronger, and looked nastier than any other Machop I had ever seen. There were scars over his muscles, and several grazes near his rubs and along his legs. A huge scar stretched from his left eye down to his cheek, and made the Machop look twice as frightening. Next to him stood the Mankey, a species I had heard was emant to be rather playful, but this one was standing still, eyes directly on me. Patches of his fur had been torn off, exposing his pinkish-brown skin underneath. There were bruises and grazes on his arms and legs, and his tail was twisted in what like an uncomfortable position. Both Pokemon looked like there were in serious pain, and it seemed that had fuelled their anger.<br>"Ok, why doesn't everyone just take a deep breathe?" I suggested, as it was the first thing that came to mind. But I had no idea how to deal with these angry Pokemon, and my suggestion of calming down seemed to have angered them. "I don't want anyone else to be hurt, so if you would just let me-"

"MA CHOP CHOP!" Machop roared.  
>"MAN KEY KEY!" Mankey squawked, and both of them suddenly began to attack: Machop began picking up rocks that had been scattered over the ground, and Mankey began to glow yellow.<p>

"That's Rock Tomb and Thunderbolt!" I exclaimed. "Vaporeon, use Aurora Beam, quickly!"  
>"Eon Vapor," Vaporeon said, and he blasted the beam out, without even waiting to charge it. Machop threw the rocks, which collided with the Aurora Beam. They froze and landed on the beach, giving Mankey a clear shot to fire the attack. A bolt of yellow electricity was fired, and Vaporeon and I jumped out of the way. I saw the attack hit the boat, blasting a hole in the deck. As I landed, getting sand in my mouth and eyes, I heard a squawk, and managed to look up.<br>Pidgeotto had soared down, white energy surrounding her, and slammed into Mankey and Machop, bowling the two of them over. I smiled and blinked the sand out of my eyes, and noticed the three men in white robes again. It took me a few seconds to realise that there must be karate students, as all three of them looked very fit. I could see them bringing their unconscious Pokemon (Hitmonchan, Hitmonlee and Hitmontop) back inside their PokeBalls.  
>"Oi, kid, your one of those Pokemon Catchers, aye?" One of the men asked. I was going to ask how he knew, but I remembered how the logo was on the khaki uniform.<br>"Yeah, I am, why?" I asked as I got to my feet.  
>"Well, catch those Pokemon, they blew up our motorbikes!" Another man groaned. I nodded, and leapt up, hoping everyone was alright. Vaporeon and Pidgeotto were firing multiple Shadow Balls and Air Slashes, not wanting to get close enough to be harmed by Machop and Mankey. But the two Pokemon were using a number of strong attacks: while Machop kept Rock Tomb up, Mankey was also using Rock Slide, causing rocks to fall down from the nearby cliff.<br>"Fight back guys, don't let them win!" I shouted. "Try using Surf and Ominous Wind!" Vaporeon and Pidgeotto nodded, and as Machop picked up more rocks and Mankey's eyes glowed, causing the rocks to shake, a huge wave appeared out of the ocean, rushing towards the battle. The karate boys gasped and rushed away, and I simply sighed. The wave was centred only near the battle, and I was more concerned for Pidgeotto getting harmed then the men.  
>"Vaaaaaa-POOOOR!" Vaporeon cried, and the Surf rose up over her, and then crashed down towards the field. I watched with anticipation, but was appalled at what I saw. Machop jumped up, managing to soar over the wave, and reached through the water, grabbing Vaporeon by his tail. Pidgeotto flew to her team-mates defence, black energy forming for the Ominous Wind, but Mankey jumped up as well, his right fist turning ice blue.<br>"That's Ice Punch!" I exclaimed to no one, and watched as Pidgeotto was punched into the Surf. Machop then grabbed Vaporeon by the tail, picked him up, and threw him into a tree.  
>"And that was Vital Throw!" I gasped. The water began receeding, and I looked at the scene in shock: Pidgeotto, lying frozen on the ground, and Vaporeon, slumped unconsciously over a rock. Once all the water was gone, leaving the sand wet and brown, Machop and Mankey looked at each other, and then turned angrily towards me. I took a step backwards, but I tripped over, and landed on my back in the sand. I heard laughter, and realised Machop and Mankey were laughing at me. But I could feel something in my back pocket, and I knew with horror what it was.<br>_Suddenly, I was inside a cave, with tears and dust trickling down my face. The ground was rumbling, and my chest felt like it was being crushed, which it probably was…  
><em>"TINE!"  
>"PROBO!" Two Pokemon cries brought me out of my flashback, and I looked up at the sun overhead, with no cave roofs bearing over me. I looked around, and was stunned to see a Mantine and Probopass moving towards Machop and Mankey. The Mantine was firing multi-coloured rings in the form of a Psybeam, while the Probopass smashed against the ground, making rocks shoot out of the ground into the fighting Pokemon in the form of Stone Edge.<br>"What the-" I mumbled, but a cry of delight caught my attention. I watched as Robert, dripping wet, ran across the ocean, grinning to himself.  
>"I've been commanding this ship for over ten years, and I've rarely had the chance for a good Pokemon battle!" He boomed, before laughing more. "Aerial Ace and Flash Cannon, let's go!"<br>"Man!" Mantine yelled, and his wings glowed white.  
>"Bopass!" Probopass said, and a ball of glowing silver energy formed. Machop and Mankey danced around angrily, and began firing Rock Tombs, Fire Punches, Thunderbolts and Rock Slides at the Pokemon.<br>"Trev, don't you have any other Pokemon?" Robert called, ignoring an explosion as Mantine's Water Pulse collided with Mankey's Thunderbolt. I gulped, and I reached into the pockets of my khaki pants.  
>"Just one," I whispered, and felt my hand close around something. It was a PokeBall, one that I only carried with me simply to know it is there, and to know my Charizard is safe. I hadn't let him out of his ball for almost three years, and I felt an uncomfortable shiver as I pulled it out and looked at it.<br>_I was back in the cave, feeling around on my hands and knees, trying to grab the red and white ball as it rolled away, ignoring the rocks battering my back.  
>"Stop, come back!" My squeaky, pre-pubescent voice wailed, and I tried to grab it. There was a roar, and I looked around in worry. All I could see in the darkness was a distance white glow, which was flickering even as I stared at it. Suddenly, a jet of orange and red flames lit up part of the cave, but it only showed me all the rocks falling, highlighting the doom I was in…<em>

I blinked, and the cave disappeared, replaced by more scenes of a battle: Mantine soaring down from the sky, the front of his body hitting Machop as he tried a Karate Chop, and Probopass was forming a ball of yellow electricity in front of his nose, but Mankey was readying a Cross Chop.  
>"Trev, if you have another Pokemon, do you think you could use it please?" Robert asked desperately, and ran forwards as Mantine collapsed to the ground, looking a bit weak. I gulped again, and looked down at the PokeBall in my hands. The surface was badly scratched, and there were several white parts showing through the red. A large dent was at the bottom in the fully white part, and I felt bad for Charizard. I felt something warm streak down my cheek, and realised it was a tear. More began to stream, and I let out a sob.<br>"Sorry old buddy, but I have to do this." I whispered, and held the PokeBall by my heart, and then threw it with all my might. It landed between Pidgeotto and Vaporeon, but the two disappeared as bright white light shone through.  
>The battle paused, and Robert, his Pokemon, Machop, Mankey and I all stared at the energy. Two long wings formed, followed by a tail, a wide body, arms, legs, and finally one long, pointed snout. The light faded, and we all stared at my Charizard standing there.<br>However, my Charizard didn't look like others: similar to Machop and Mankey, there were visible scars on his body, but these ones were major. One scar, which was red and inflamed, stretched vertically across his right wing, while another brown one criss-crossed along his tail. The yellow and red flame was very weak, and there were a lot of wrinkles on Charizard's face. He stretched his body, making a multicoloured bruise on his stomach extend slightly.  
>"CHAAAAARR!" He roared, and a small jet of fire came out. Machop and Mankey were beginning to back away slightly in fright, while Robert was leading his two Pokemon back towards the boat. Tears were coming faster down my cheek, and I took a step forwards. A shell cracked beneath my shoes, and Charizard looked around at me. He scowled at me a bit, but his face relaxed, and looked at me, waiting his orders. I began sobbing, and I felt horribly weak and pathetic, standing in the middle of a beach, sobbing my heart out.<br>"Bl-Bl-Blast Bu-urn," I blubbered, and pulled my other PokeBalls out. Vaporeon and Pidgeotto were sucked in, just as Charizard burst into flames.  
>"CHAR-RI-ZAAARD!" He yelled, and suddenly exploded. The yellow, red and orange flames were pushed out, similar to a bomb explosion, and Machop and Mankey became engulfed in flames. I heard their cries for a few seconds, but then I was pushed backwards by the force of the powerful attack before the flames could reach me. I rolled down into a crater, possibly caused by the motorbikes being blown up, and the flames passed over. My face felt like it had caught on fire, and I suddenly became exceedingly hot, but still tears came down my face. My eyes were shut, with the red of the flames burning overhead. Then, almost as suddenly, the fire disappeared, and was replaced with something heavier.<br>"Trev? Trevor, where are you?" Robert called. I opened an eye, and found sand piled up all around me.  
>"Over here," I replied, and then coughed violently, spraying sand out. "Disgusting," I mumbled, and wiped sand and tears off my face. I then turned to examine the beach. A ten metre wide crater had appeared, with piles of sand being forced up against the cliff, trees and into the ocean. Charizard sat in the middle, his wings flapping, blowing more sand around. Part of the sand around him had turned to what looked like glass, and I remembered from a science glass I once did which said that very high temperatures turned sand to glass. There was the sound of footsteps, and Robert appeared.<br>"Mankey and Machop are over there," He said, and pointed to two pairs of legs sticking out. I absent mindedly thew the PCM Balls, and only watched them turn into red energy for a second. I ran down into the crater, slipping slightly, and stopped by Charizard. He looked down at me, and then extended his arms and gave me a hug.  
>"I have missed you," I whispered to him, "but you understand why I've kept you inside your ball, don't you?"<br>"Char," Charizard replied, and just looked happy to see me. I smiled up at him, and we remained that way for several minutes, letting old memories wash over us.  
>"Trev, I just had a call from base," Robert cried, interrupting my thoughts. "They want us back there straight away."<br>"I think I know why," I replied, and Charizard gave me a look. But I just shook my head, telling him not to bother, and walked towards the bushes to get the PCM Balls. I need to get them, as I knew who they truly belonged to.

Half an hour later, I was standing at the end of fancy corridor. The walls were narrow, but they were made of a fancy type of wood. Pictures, many from Pokemon Catcher events, adorned the walls, each one encased in a black frame. The carpet was a deep wine red, and my feet sank into it with each step I took. I was still wearing my khaki uniform, which was now charred, torn and covered in sand. But I didn't care about this, and I planted my feet firmly in front of a black door. The words "ISABELLA FROST" were dead centre in gold writing, and my eyes narrowed and I knocked furiously on it.  
>"Enter," Isabella's voice called soothingly, and I burst through.<br>I had never been into the room before, but I was stunned at how simple it was. The room had ocean blue walls, with floor-to-ceiling windows to the left, giving perfect views of the ocean. The carpet was wine red as well, and two purple couches stood on either side of a coffee table. At the top of the room was a wide desk, which had things neatly organised into trays and drawers. Frostbite sat stiffly in a leather chair on one side, while two chairs were opposite here, one occupied. The walls were bare, and the office was very dull. I had imagined her living in some sort of ice palace, like the White Witch, and cracking a whip at an army of minions. But Isabella just smiled at me, and pointed to a seat.  
>"Take a seat, if you will, Mr Archer," She said, and I rushed forwards and sat down. The man next to me smiled and extended a tanned hand.<br>"This is my associate, Mr Williamson," Isabella explained.  
>"Pleasure to meet you," Mr Williamson said, his voice very smooth. Though he was wearing a fancy black suit, the man looked very relaxed, yet I could tell he was wealthy, with slicked back hair, a good tan, and a face that looked like it had had surgery on it.<br>"Nice to meet you, but I didn't come up here for this," I snapped, and ignored his hand. I pulled the two PCM Balls out and dropped them on the desk. The two rolled towards Isabella, and she raised an eyebrow.

"Your Machop and Mankey, as requested, but I have a feeling you already own them!" I snapped. Isabella and Mr Williamson exchanged looks, and then all four eyes focused on me.  
>"Why is that?" Frostbite asked coolly.<br>"Both Pokemon knew moves that they shouldn't know: Machop had Fire Punch and Rock Tomb, and Mankey had Ice Punch, Rock Slide and Thunderbolt," I explained, my voice echoing in the room. "It was as the two Pokemon had come equipped with ways to counter Pidgeotto and Vaporeon."  
>"And, once they had fainted, Charizard would have been forced out," Frostbite finished, and my eyes bulged. "Very good Mr Archer, I am impressed."<br>"But… wait… you did set this up!" I gasped, and stood up angrily.  
>"Of course we tested you, Mr Archer, we had to see your capabilities," Frostbite replied.<br>"My capabilities for what?" I boomed. Mr Williamson looked at Frostbite, who nodded, and then pulled a folder out of his suit jacket.  
>"Your company is struggling to meet its demand," He began, and flicked through some papers. "Too many people want to get Pokemon, and trying to capture wild Pokemon can be difficult, with them being a bit too… shall I say, feisty," Mr Williamson chuckled.<br>"It is hard, yeah, but it is for a good cause," I replied, getting a bit concerned.  
>"But we need to make things easier, so we have come up with a way to do just that," Isabella said.<br>"Stealing," Mr Williamson said bluntly. I felt my heart drop, and I stumbled backwards slightly, unable to comprehend this.  
>"You are going to steal trainers Pokemon, and try and get away with it?" I whispered.<br>"Why, of course, and we expect you to help us," Isabella replied, and she stood up.  
>"WHAT! I would never steal from someone, never!" I yelled. Mr Williamson smirked, and pulled a photo out of the folder. I looked at it and gasped again: it was of Mrs Lewis' car.<br>"You were the only person near her car at the time of the accident," Mr Williamson said, and Frostbite smiled as much as her botox allowed. "We could supply some evidence to suggest that _someone _cut her brakes." I took this in, and I nearly slid down the wall in shock.  
>"S-s-so are y-you saying…" I stuttered.<br>"We are saying that, unless you sign up for our plan, we'll tell the police it was your fault the brakes were cut," Mr Williamson finished. I tried to find words, tried to say something to express my rage at this. But Frostibte just flashed her dazzling white teeth at me in triumph.  
>"You have two hours to give us an answer, or we decide for you. Goodbye, Mr Archer," Frostbite said. I opened the door, and I stumbled out of it. Once I closed it, I slid down the wall, tears beginning to flow again. I had just been thrown the biggest curveball of my life, and if I didn't do something unthinkable, I would be arrested anyway for a crime I didn't commit.<br>So much for trying to change the world.


	4. Resort Gorgeous

**Resort Gorgeous **

The only place where I could find comfort was in a large field part of the Pokemon Catches facility. Many events, mainly fundraisers or staff parties, were held here, so it had to be huge. I remembered hearing about it being the size of about three football stadiums, or something like that, but you could tell just by looking at it how huge it was, especially with the fact it was very empty. I stumbled through the neatly cut grass, a sea breeze brushing against my body as if it was pushing me backwards, pushing me back towards Isabella….

How could I have been such a fool! I signed up to make a difference, to try and change this god forsaken region. Kanto and the Sevii Islands are still feeling the effects of Team Rocket, and I want to try and do something about it, try and cheer people up! How can I cheer people up if I steal from them? But if I don't agree to steal, I'll be carted off to jail for "murdering" someone…. Oh I'm so confused, I think I'm going to be sick…

The only place to find shelter from the sea breeze, which rises up over the hedges caging us inside the tower grounds, was next to a huge birch tree. It was able to provide some decent shelter and coverage from the chilly breeze, and it was always a good place to go if you wanted a place to think. I lay down under the tree, sinking into the grass that was much longer and wilder here. I could see the branches and leaves blowing above my head, and I smiled to myself, pleased to be in such a cool and relaxing place.

Ever since I had seen that car plunge off the cliff, my life hadn't been the same. The image of Mrs Lewis' face as she realised what was going to happen still haunted me in my sleep, and I had been having rough nights since then. And now I had the whole stress of today pressing down on my entire body, squeezing what remained of my hope and happiness out. And these two events were now connected: two things that were ruining my mind, both connected through me.

"What am I going to do…." I mumbled, and shut my eyes. I didn't want to think about car crashes or evil executives. I wanted to enjoy the cool outdoors and listen to the pleasant, soothing sounds of the leaves rubbing against each other.

Unfortunately, that failed to happen.

As soon as I closed my eyes and tried to separate my mind from this world, things only got worse. I began dreaming the worst possible nightmare: I was alone in a large empty dark void, chains wrapped around my body. I couldn't move, I could barely breathe, and had no idea what was going on or where I was. Suddenly I began sinking in a circular motion, spinning around as the floor beneath disappeared. The chains burned red hot, and within seconds had turned into serpents of flame that were burning every part of my body. I tried screaming, but no sound came out, and I doubt anyone would have been able to hear me.

As I feel through this strange dream world, I saw things flash by me: different areas of the Sevii Islands, Pokemon I had caught either for myself or the Catches, but it was faces of people I knew that stuck out the most. I saw my different members of my family, all smiling and waving, and Robert smoking a cigarette. But these familiar, happy faces changed dramatically: my family turned into Frostbite and Mr Williamson, staring down at me, and Robert turned into Mrs Lewis' screaming face. I was able to hear her yell, an I winced in the pain. The burning chains were hurting my arms, and all I could see was flames burning my body.

"HELP…. HEEEELLLP!" I screamed, and looked down, my body still falling. A large mouth was getting closer and closer, waiting to swallow me whole. I screamed more, and the mouth just grew bigger, until I was only inches away…..

"AAAAAAAAH!"

"GAAAAAAR!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

"GLIIIIIIIII!" I opened my eyes instantly, and what I woke up to wasn't something I wanted to see, especially after that dream: a large purple mouth with razor sharp teeth inside. I screamed loudly, and then the creature screamed and leapt up into the sky, and soon both of us were screaming as I jumped up, trying to see where the thing had gone.

"GLIIIIIIIIGAAAAAAAR!" I froze and looked upwards towards the tree, raising my head slowly, not sure what to expect….. it was a Gligar. I sighed and wiped my forehead and looked at the ground-flying type in a more relaxed state. I had battled several Gligar's before, as many little boys enjoyed playing with them, and I could see the appeak. Gligar's had sharp, pointed claws that blended in with its pinkish-purple body, and was matched with an equally jagged tail that Gligar could balance on. They had small wings, that were pointed, of course, and I had been afraid of them when I had first set my eyes on it. However, I had quickly realised that Gligar's weren't very dangerous creatures, and I didn't have much to be afraid of.

"What are you doing here, wild Pokemon never appear here!" I told the Gligar, who just stared at me with it's wide, hypnotizing eyes. And I was right: wild Pokemon use to roam around these fields, but than Isabella Frost used them for training new catchers, and that had been enough to scare them all away. However, this Gligar merely shrugged at what I said, and then rose up into the air. A soft breeze allowed him to spread his wings and twirl around, hovering high above my head.

"You really need to get out of here, it isn't safe for Pokemon here!" I told it. "You might get badly attacked!"

"Gligar Gar Gli." The Gligar replied with another shrug, and suddenly dive bombed me. I squealed and ducked down, allowing the Gligar to go past and then swoop around in mid-air. The Gligar chuckled as I lay on the grass, staring up at the cheeky little critter.

"I'm serious, you need to get out of here!" I said, trying not to laugh, but the Gligar was just making me smile, making me feel a bit better about myself. I was pushing the thoughts of what had happened only minutes ago out of my head, trying not to remember the wicked smiles on Frostbite and Mr Williamson's faces. I was getting a dirty feeling throughout my body just thinking of those two. But the Gligar's happy, laughing face was able to cheer me up: I guess that was why this charity had worked for so long.

"Trevor, are you out here?" A voice boomed suddenly from near the tower and I quickly turned around. Another catcher, a blonde man called Jack, was standing by the glass doors with a slip of paper in his hand.

"What do you want?" I called back. A shower of leaves fell down on my head, and I looked to see that Gligar had disappeared up into the branches.

"Frostbite wants you to do a series of orders," Jack shouted back. "Robert is already waiting for you down at the harbour." I sighed and gave him the thumbs up, signalling I'd received the message, and I watched as he disappeared back into the building. As soon as he was out of sight, there was a creak as Gligar jumped off the branch and dived down. This time I was prepared: I grabbed hold of his wings, effectively stopping him in his tracks.

"I need to go now, I have a job to do," I explained to the Gligar. "However, when I come back, I'll pop bye and say Hello."

"Gli Gar Gar!" The Gligar said with a nod. Even though we'd only known each other for a few minutes, I had a feeling that this Gligar was lonely. There had to be a reason why he wasn't with other Pokemon and had refused to leave when I told him to. I was about to say goodbye when I got an idea. I pulled up the bottom of my khaki pants and gave a great pull. The fabric was torn, and the Gligar was rather surprised at what I had done. But he was even more surprised when I tied it around his tail.

"Just so I can find you easier." I said with a wink. The Gligar smiled, and then he quickly gave me a hug with his big arms. I was surprised, btu before I could return the feeling Gligar had risen up into the sky, carried on by the currents.

"Gli Gli!" He called, and then soared away over the large hedge.

"Bye…." I replied, and then slowly, reluctantly, I walked back towards the tower, ready to take on my next job, wondering if I would ever see the Gligar again.

I had no idea what Frostbite had planned.

_21 hours later…._

It turned out she planned to work me to my death.

For twenty one hours straight, I found Robert carting me around to all parts of the Sevii Islands. I'm pretty sure we ended up visiting every possible island, but it was easy to loser track. After the fourth or fifth, everything began to look the same: large fields or forests, surrounded by either ocean or rocks, and all inhabited by Pokemon that didn't want to be captured. A furious Beedrill badly poisoned Vaporeon in a forest, and Pidgeotto nearly collapsed after chasing a Skarmory up Mt Ember. During one battle near the Trainer Tower, Robert had to led me his Probopass and Mantine in order for me to defeat a herd of wild Arcanine as Vaporeon and Pidgeotto had been burnt to unconsciousness.

Not once did I consider using one of my three other Pokemon.

As I sat in Robert's boat, tired, injured and finally heading back towards Two Island, I pulled the three PokeBalls out. I could clearly identify Charizard's, as it was the only one that didn't have a thick layer of filth and dust on it. I had wanted to send the three out, but I didn't want to reunite with them in the middle of a series of fierce battles. I felt tears welling up as I stared at the three metal capsules and put them away, not wanting to face those memories right now.

But they did force me to think back to my youth. All of this could be traced back to me leaving on my journey, when I had been a fresh faced, optimistic thirteen year old, taking my Charmander and getting ready to take on the Indigo League!

But that was before the incident….

_The cave had looked dark and scary from the outside, but I had forced myself to enter it. It had been silent, with not even the Pokemon moving around. I turned a flashlight on, giving me a better picture of what was going on. Every rock, every wall, every boulder looked the same, so I was walking blindly through the cave, trying to find my way. I refused to bring my Pokemon out even then, not wanting them to get injured._

_So I soldiered bravely on._

_After half an hour of roaming around, and only encountering the usual Geodude and Zubat that infested caves like pests, I heard a noise: it was much louder than anything I'd heard before, and it was coming from close by. As I looked around for the source of the noise, I saw something glowing in the distance. Slowly I began to approach, creeping as stealthily as possible. I soon didn't need my flashlight, and I found the source of the light to be a Pokemon that I instantly recognised as the human like Electabuzz, an electric type with a long tail and black stripes on its yellow body._

"_We are done here, let's leave," A voice boomed, and I noticed two other figures: one was a Golem, a heavy, boulder shaped rock type, and the other was a human. The person was male, judging by the suit he was wearing. I couldn't make out his face next to the blinding light, but he definitely sounded old. He was staring at something on the cave floor, but after a few moments of me watching he sighed and turned around._

_Then I realised it was a dead body._

"_Oh my god!" I gasped, and stared at the lifeless figure lying on the ground. I didn't know what to think: I was only thirteen, but here was a dead body lying in front of me! What could I do? I was too far away to alert the authorities, and I definitely couldn't take on the mysterious man, who must have been the murderer. I decided to back away slowly, hoping that I wouldn't get noticed, and retreat back to the nearest town to report the murder._

"_A witness? I dare say that is inconvenient," I gasped again at the sound of the smirking voice, and I could see the man's eyes staring at me, the only part of his face that I could see._

"_Y-y-y-ou d-don't scare m-m-me!" I said, trying to sound brave as I backed away, but the man just laughed again, and his Electabuzz and Golem laughed cruelly as well. _

"_I don't care if I scare you or not, you're a witness to a crime," The man replied, obviously amused. "And, because of that, you are going to have to be eliminated. Sorry, little boy, but I don't make any exceptions." That was when the Golem began glowing a fiery red colour, roaring loudly as it did so. The man and the Electabuzz began walking away, and I screamed and ran in the opposite direction. The cave was now glowing red, and I could see Pokemon turning and fleeing from the scene. I pulled all of my PokeBalls out and threw them into the air, just as the Golem exploded…._

"Trevor…. Trevor… you still there?"

I opened my eyes, and realised that I must have fallen to sleep. Robert was standing over me, chuckling as he smoked a cigarette.

"Come on then sleepy head, we're back home," The sailor explained, and dropped two PokeBalls on to my chest. I put Vaporeon and Pidgeotto back inside my pocket, and I hoped that they had been fully and happily healed. I could hear lots of noises coming from the centre of the town, and I looked at my watch and realised it was the lunchtime rush.

"I can't believe how long that took!" I said with a yawn, and straightened out my clothing as I followed Robert off the ship. I caught myself in a mirror and was shocked to see how messy my hair was. But I also could notice tears had gone down my cheek: thinking about the cave was also too much to me, wheter I was asleep or awake. I was just happy Robert had been kind enough not to point it out.

"I know, I'm going to have a word with Miss Frost when we get back to base," Robert snarled, and he stomped down the gangplank. I walked more cautiously, shielding my eyes from the glaring sun. The two of us headed out of the private dock in silence as I double checked I had all fifteen PokeBalls. Thinking back to the battles, I couldn't help but compare them to the incident with Machop and Mankey: had Frostbite been testing me more, trying to break down my spirit and realise I had to be a thief?

The thoughts were pushed out of my mind as we entered town: a loud scream sounded over all the noise of people heading out to lunch for their breaks. Heads all turned as a woman, most likely in her sixties, pointed a wrinkled finger at a group of boys loitering outside the arcade.

"THOSE BOYS!" The woman squawked. "THOSE BOYS STOLE MY POKEMON!" The old lady had a walking stick and looked rather ill, so everyone was shocked as they turned towards the boys. The teenagers looked stunned, and they turned and sprinted off through the street.

"Stop them!" The elderly woman wailed, and several men quickly leapt up. However, this made me think of something: if I helped stop some thieving boys, maybe then I would be able to clear my conscience! Doing this would prove to myself that I can't be a robber: it was a brilliant opportunity.

"OI, STOP!" I shouted, and I raced forwards. Several years of physical training allowed me to move very quickly, and it was easy to catch up to them. But my legs began to feel like lead, and I couldn't blame them: nearly a whole day of running around after deranged Pokemon didn't do wonders for your health. The teenagers were getting further and further away, and I was close to collapsing.

That was when I saw a hint of purple.

Something blurred past me, nearly blowing me backwards with its speed. I was too tired to talk, but I was able to look around and see who it was: it was the Gligar from yesterday, the fabric from my shorts still wrapped around his tail. He was smiling widely, obviously not sure what I was doing.

"GAAAR!" He cried, and dived down to tackle me. But I waved my hands and pointed at the teenagers.

"Get…. Them!" I said, managing to catch my breath. Gligar looked at the retreating boys and nodded, and then he suddenly raced forwards at a phenomenal speed. I smiled, glad to have his assistance, and managed to continue running forwards. The boys looked around, wondering where I was, when Gligar suddenly appeared, smashing into one boy with enough force to send him crashing into a second. The boy in front of them froze in shock, and I leapt dramatically forward and tackled him to the ground. The force of hitting the ground rippled through my body, causing me to moan in pain.

"Gligar Gli!" Gligar said, and I watched as he flew forwards, his wings outstretched and glowing. The final boy was sent crashing to the ground as Gligar bowled him over, and I smiled triumphantly.

"Vaporeon, come on out!" I shouted, and threw the ball into the air. As Vaporeon formed, many people were running up, including Robert with the elderly lady. "Aurora Beam!" I ordered.

"Vaporeon Vap!" Vaporeon replied, and the rainbow coloured frosty beam shot out. The boys legs were frozen together, preventing them from escaping. They all began swearing and yelling, protesting their innocence. Several people rushed to get the local police force, and the elderly lady began crying.

"Thank you young man, thank you!" She cried, and gave me a hug while the crowd applauded. "They each took some of my Pokemon! The PokeBalls have gold stars on them." Vaporeon and Gligar heard this and began searching for the PokeBalls: Gligar used Metal Claw and Vaporeon used Bite to tear their pockets, causing stuff to come onto the ground. Soon the six PokeBalls were uncovered amongst their own, and the boys reached for them.

"We never stole anything!" One of them shouted.

"Yeah, that old lady is lying, they're our PokeBalls!" Another one yelled.

"You can tell that to the police!" Robert snapped, and he passed the PokeBalls back to the old lady. She continued thanking everybody for about five minutes, in which time the police arrived. The crowd watched as their Growlithe melted the ice, and then the four boys were carted away. At this point everyone began heading back to their lunches or to work, and within seconds only a few people remained. I lay down on the ground, Vaporeon nestling alongside and Gligar floating overhead.

"My legs are killing me," I sighed, and Vaporeon and Gligar chuckled. However, I noticed Vaporeon stopped laughing as soon as Gligar did, and he looked at the new Pokemon suspiciously. "Vaporeon, this is a Gligar I met yesterday. Gligar, this is my trusty friend Vaporeon." Gligar smiled goofily and raised a claw out. Vaporeon looked at me, giving me a _do I have too _look, and I just laughed and nodded.

"Por-eee." He sighed, and reluctantly raised a paw for Gligar to shake.

"Well, now that you two are friends," I laughed, "I figured I would catch Gligar. I haven't had a new Pokemon in a while, and I realised that I can't force you and Pidgeotto to fight alone."

"GLIGAR GAAAAR!" Gligar cried happily, and he went soaring up into the sky in his happiness. I laughed, and even Vaporeon managed a smile. But I stopped laughing when Vaporeon fired another Aurora Beam: Gligar froze in mid air, and then fell like an anvil, landing with a loud thud in front of Robert and the elderly woman.

"Well, I guess we don't have to battle him then," I sighed, much to Vaporeon's amusement. I pulled an Ultra Ball out and threw it with all my might. It hit Gligar, turning him into yellow energy and sucking him inside. There was a shake, and another, and another… with a loud ping, Gligar was caught!

"Congratulations," Robert said. "But if your finished, we really need to get back now."

"Thank you once again, I really appreciate what you did!" The old woman said, and she gave me another tight hug.

"Your welcome ma'am," I replied and hugged her back. Robert and I waved to her as she headed off, and then we began the long walk past Cape Brink towards the tower. But I really couldn't care about the walk anymore as I held the Ultra Ball up.

"I hope your happy Vaporeon, we finally have a six Pokemon team," I told the water type.

"Por," Vaporeon huffed, and I could only laugh.

Nearly an hour later, after I had had a shower and sorted myself out, I found myself back outside Frostbites office.

So there I was, separated from the nasty bitch by only her exquisite office door. I had the bag of all the PokeBalls in it, waiting to deliver them all to her. But I was anxious about going into the room: I mean, after all, the last time I went in I was giving the option to be a thief or be convicted as a murderer. However, I wanted to see the smug look on Frostbite's face when I handed over the PokeBalls, and prove to her that I was tougher than she thought.

"I can do this… I can do this…." I whispered, and then I knocked on the door.

"Come in, Mr Archer," Her cold voice said, and I shivered slightly as I opened the door. The office was still the same as yesterday, and Isabella was sitting behind her desk, hands together and smiling deviously as I walked towards her.

"I heard you were coming up. Have you made a decision?" She asked instantly before I had even shut the door.

"Not yet," I snapped back, and I opened up the bag of PokeBalls. "I caught every last Pokemon you forced me to capture, so I hope you're happy!" For a few seconds Frostbite looked shocked, the first time I'd ever seen her show an emotion asides from maliciously happy or furious. But after a few moments the emotion passed, and then Isabella just smirked.

"Well done Mr Archer, I'm very impressed," She smirked. She turned around in her seat and grabbed something from a bag behind her. I wasn't sure what she was doing, but than she turned back around quite dramatically. On the table she placed six PokeBalls, each one with a gold star on top, and a long grey wig wrapped around a walking stick.

I felt my heart nearly fall out of my body.

I literally collapsed into one of the seats, dropping the bag on the floor. Frostbite cackled like some sort of Disney witch, fingering the PokeBalls and the walking stick as she looked at me with sadistic pleasure.

"You…. you were the old lady…." I whispered, running things over in my head. The boys had said the PokeBalls were there's: had they been telling the truth? Did I steal Pokemon from some innocent teenagers?

"I quite like my ability to take on a role," Frostbite explained, laughing in between her words. "I was in several drama productions in my youth, you know. But when I joined the Pokemon Catchers, I found I didn't have enough time…. until now!" And she laughed loudly and wickedly again. "It was easy enough to place the gold stars on their PokeBalls: I pretended to be selling them rare Ball Seals from the Sinnoh region, and the gullible children fell for it. And it looks like you did too!" I looked up at Frostbite as she began laughing again, and I could just feel all my anger rising up. This woman was wicked, nasty, and I couldn't bear her anymore.

"YOU BITCH, WHY DO YOU KEEP TRICKING ME LIKE THIS!" I shouted, stopping Frostbite from laughing. I grabbed the bag of PokeBalls and raised them up, holding them like a weapon. But before I could do anything else, they was a swishing sound from nearby. I turned around just in time to see three white claws appear almost out of nowhere. The came down across my face, causing me to scream in pain as I collapsed to the floor. The PokeBalls spilled out of the bag, and as I watched them rolling away I saw something else spilling onto the carpet…. Blood.

My blood.

I lent against my chair, clutching the side of my face. I was already feeling a bit light headed from the blood I was losing, but I managed to stare around the room properly. A Weavile was standing on Frostbite's desk, licking my blood from its claws with an evil look in its eyes.

"Weavile Vile Wea!" It hissed, making Frostbite laugh coldly. She walked over towards her coffee table, where a bowl of fruit lay around several newspapers and magazines. I tried to see what she was doing, but I could gather was that Isabella had grabbed something. She walked slowly back towards me, an evil look on her face. That was when I noticed she had a lemon in her hand.

"No…. it hurts too much already…." I moaned. My face did feel like it had been hacked with, but Frostbite just smirked. She wrenched my hand away and put the lemon right up to my injured cheek. She squeezed it, causing the light yellow juice to erupt onto my face.

"AAAAARRRRGGGHH!" I shouted, the pain too much to handle. Frostbite laughed, and she continued to squeeze the lemon. Once it was dried up she grabbed my face and lifted me up so there was only a centimetre between us.

"Now listen here you bastard," She hissed. "If you ever try anything like that ever again, it won't just be your face that Weavile cuts," and with that, Weavile laughed and clicked her claws together. I simply nodded, which seemed to calm Frostbite down a bit. She dropped me back into my seat and I went back to clutching my cheek, trying to stop the blood.

"I was considering letting you go, cancelling that threat we made yesterday," Isabella continued, moving back behind her desk. "However, due to what just happened, I think you need to be punished." I knew that this was coming, so I wasn't surprised as she pulled a manila folder out. "Mr Williamson and I have already chosen our first target, and we will be targeting them very soon. We need your Vaporeon and Pidgeotto in case this person gives chase, as we know she has a speedboat on her property."

"When is it happening?" I moaned, knowing that I could no longer fight this. Frostbite just laughed and winked at me.

"You'll know," she replied, and Weavile laughed maliciously. "You may go know Mr Archer, but be warned: if you try anything, like fleeing to Kanto, I will track you down and personally break your neck. Is that clear?" I just nodded, as if I opened out I would have started crying, the tears already forming in my eyes. Blood was all over my uniform, and I highly doubted if my cheek would ever properly heal. As I stood to leave Frostbite raised a finger. She picked one of the PokeBalls up and tossed it to me.

"For your troubles," she said with a smile. Curiously I pressed the button, opening the ball up. With a flash and a shower of stars a Pokemon formed: a golden yellow Magikarp.

"Karp Karp, Magikarp Karp Magi," The fish said, and bounced all around the floor. Frostbite laughed evilly, and I felt like I had been hurt again. I was on the verge of breaking down, my brain was throbbing and I highly doubted my heart was still there.

"Thanks…. For everything," I whispered and brought the Magikarp, who had been flailing on the spot, back inside its ball. I put it inside my bag I had brought with me, and then with an uncontrollable sob I fled from the room, Frostbite and Weavile laughing cruelly behind me.

I had failed myself.

_Three days later…._

With any day, I began it by driving into work on my Vespa. But for the past few days, I had the feeling that going into work was like signing a death sentence. I hadn't done any captures for days: apparently, Frostbite wanted me to rest after the marathon of captures I did the other day. But I knew the real reason why she was doing this. I could easily get injured if I went out on another mission, or I could use the opportunity to fake my death or actually die, and I knew Frostbite needed me for this mysterious mission.

So I had been doing desk work, filling in forms and organising things. It was a nice break, but I knew that something bigger, something twice as dangerous was coming my way. During my breaks I had been training my main Pokemon: Pidgeotto and Gligar had got on well, so I had those two try and attack Vaporeon whilst dodging the Ice Beam I taught him. This experience was good training, and I was glad for a chance to train with them all. I decided to keep the shiny Magikarp at the bottom of my bag, just in case I ever needed it. I also put Charizard and my other two PokeBalls there as well, as having them in my pockets just made me feel sad, and I was feeling bad enough.

"Vaporeon Vap Vap."

As always Vaporeon was riding on my Vespa with me. He had grown more protective of me ever since he'd seen my horrible wound. I had to go to a special medical center on One Island in order to have the cuts stitched up and covered up.

"What is it Vaporeon?" I asked. It was hard to focus on driving and my deep thoughts already without Vaporeon trying to talk.

"POREON VAP!" He said and pointed with his tail. I looked to where he was pointing and was surprised: a tree was on the side of the road. I had been going up this road for years and there had never been any trees here.

"This is strange," I mumbled, but I didn't have any space left in my brain to deal with something like this. "I'll report it when we get up to base, see if they know anything about it," I said, and Vaporeon nodded. I picked up speed and continued along the route, the tree getting closer and closer. I was sure it was moving, but that would be ridiculous. But just as I got close to it, there was a loud creak. Vaporeon and I both looked at the tree cautiously and were shocked to see the tree was tilting.

"WATCH OUT!" I shouted, and I quickly swerved my Vespa out of the way. There was a loud pop and Vaporeon and I screamed as the tyres seemed to pop, causing the Vespa to spin wildly.

"WHAT'S GOING ON!" I screamed. The tree fell down, the force of the branches pushing the Vespa off the road. It was all happening so fast that I had no idea what to do!

But that was when I realised we were falling.

"!" I screamed, unable to control myself. Vaporeon and I were hurtling down a rocky cliff, no way of possibly stopping. Down below us was a large white boat amongst a series of rocks. I just hoped we hit the boat and hoped for the best.

"VAPOREON, AIM FOR THE BOAT!" I screeched, and Vaporeon simply nodded, unsure what to say. I grabbed him and pulled him close, staring at the boat as we went hurtling towards it like two rockets heading for a target. I shut my eyes, expecting my body to shatter against the boat. I continued screaming, wondering if that would somehow save us.

And then, magically, we stopped.

I slowly opened my eyes, wondering if I had died and gone to heaven. That was when I noticed we were hovering about two metres above the deck of the boat, and there seemed to be a pink outline around us.

"Vaporeon Vap Vap!" Vaporeon whispered, and pointed towards the deck. A purple Pokemon that looked like some cloth attached to a witches hat was floating above the deck, its eyes glowing pink and focused on us.

"Psychic," I replied breathlessly, and I smiled with relief at Vaporeon. The Pokemon's eyes flashed again, and then we began to slowly descend towards the boat. We landed softly on the wooden deck, but my happiness at not dying disappeared almost instantly: we had landed on a Pokemon Catcher's boat.

"Wait a minute…" I whispered, and stared around cautiously. There was the sound of laughter, causing me and Vaporeon to turn around and face the lounge. Mr Williamson and Frostbite were standing there, the strange purple Pokemon floating back towards them.

"Good job Mismagius," Frostbite said, and patted the Pokemon before retreating it back inside its PokeBall. "She was able to lift a tree from my house up onto that spot, quite a powerful Pokemon."

"Indeed. Trevor, won't you take a seat?" Mr Williamson said, and he directed me towards one of the couches. I was furious though: I had nearly died, and my Vespa would be destroyed, all so they could surprise me with what they were going to do to me. Vaporeon looked very disgruntled as well, but we obviously had no choice in the matter. They probably would have brought me here even if I hadn't annoyed Frostbite, and that was really pissed me off.

"Let's get going Robert, before Mr Archer decides to jump ship," Frostbite laughed as she called up into the cabin. I was shocked to realise Robert was a part of this, but I knew there was nothing I could do. Reluctantly I moved towards the couch and sat down, Vaporeon jumping up next to me. Mr Williamson smiled, and then he moved to grab a series of papers and arranged them on a table. Frostbite sat down on the couch opposite, a glass of champagne in her hand.

"If this goes well Mr Archer, we may just leave you alone," She explained in between her sips. "However, if this fails horribly because of you, you may find yourself under the boat instead of up here," and she and Mr Williamson laughed loudly. I forced a smile, but then I opened my bag, which had managed to stay on my back as we fell, and I double checked what I had inside: seven PokeBalls were inside amongst my uniform, my lunch and some pieces of paper. As long as I had these, I would be fine.

"Alright, so this is the plan," Mr Williamson said, and he unfurled a map of a small island. Half of the island was taken up by a huge property with a gigantic house, and the rest of the island seemed to be smaller houses and shops along a dirt road. "This is Resort Gorgeous: an island owned by the Gorgeous Family, a wealthy business family from the Sevii Islands. Their spa and resort is located here, and it is owned and operated by Selphy Gorgeous." Mr Williamson moved a photo on top of the map. I couldn't help but think that Selphy definitely fitted her last name: she was thin, tall and tanned, with long blonde hair, beautiful blue eyes and was wearing a tight fitting white dress that showed off her chest quite nicely. A Persian sat by her feet, a wicked look in its eyes that seemed like a warning to us.

"Why are we targeting her?" I asked, as I didn't see why they would go after a resort owner.

"Miss Gorgeous must stay on the island in order to care for her home and the spa," Frostbite began explaining. "She doesn't get to see Pokemon very often, so she allows poorer people to enter her spa for free if they gift her a Pokemon to train up. Over the past eight years Miss Gorgeous has received quite a lovely collection of Pokemon." It made sense now: steal every Pokemon she had, and surely it would be enough for these two.

"It sounds like it could work," I said with a smile, and Mr Williamson and Frostbite exchanged smiles.

"Vaporeon Eon?" Vaporeon whispered, but I just shook my head and winked at him. Vaporeon didn't know what I was planning, but he nodded and winked back. Mr Williamson pulled out more photographs, showing the huge house and the island in colour. I looked in, pretending to be interested and only half listening to what he explained. I wanted this to work, as I wanted to get out of this organization. I just needed this to go well….

It didn't take very long for us to head towards the Five Island district. Robert was the master of moving through the waters, and he used the waves and currents to help get us there quickly. As he navigated us, Frostbite, Mr Williamson and I had to get changed: in order for our identities to remain hidden, we would be wearing black wetsuits and balaclavas. Before I brought Vaporeon back inside his PokeBall, I took him outside onto the deck.

"If things start going bad, I want you to take my bag and get out of here," I explained. Vaporeon looked shocked at the idea of abandoning me, but I gave him a calming hug. "I have your PokeBall, so I'll be able to call for you if I survive," and this seemed to calm Vaporeon down a bit. I smiled and give him another hug before I brought him back. I didn't want any of my Pokemon, including the Magikarp, to get injured if things went bad, so I knew I had to be careful.

"Archer!" Mr Williamson called, and I rushed back inside. I was glad they were moving so quickly. If I paused for even a second I began to feel guilty and question why I was doing this. We were all dressed, and I had to admit Isabella looked quite sexy in her tight wetsuit. Mr Williamson had a large metal case on the table on top of the maps, and I was surprised to see that the case contained a variety of guns. I was no expert on weapons, but I could tell it would only take one pull of the trigger to kill a whole office building fill of people. There were also a variety of grenades, some flash knives and one tiny metal box.

"Here, take these," He said, and passed me two large machine guns, three hand guns, two grenades and a small switchblade. Isabella had a whole belt full of grenades and bigger, sharper, deadlier knives and the same guns I had attached to her back.

"These look… deadly," I mumbled pathetically, and the two laughed.

"Why aren't going to beat them with sponges now are we?" Isabella laughed. I wanted to ask where they had got this from, but I figured the answer would just disturb me. The boat suddenly came to a stop, and we all exchanged nervous looks: there was no turning back now.

"Let's do this," Mr Williamson said, and he slipped his balaclava on. I sighed and did the same, and then followed them out onto the deck. Robert was already down there putting the gangplank down. He nodded to Frostbite and Mr Williamson, but he quickly looked the other way as I walked past, which I was glad of. I use to respect the sailor, but now I was just disgusted to see he was doing this, especially when he had mouthed off about Frostbite the other day. As soon as we were off the gangplank, Mr Williamson unhitched one of his guns and pointed forwards. We walked by three fancy speedboats, a yacht and a vessel similar to ours, but as we headed up a stone path towards the house was when the wealth hit us.

The house was three storeys high and looked like royalty should be living there. The windows were high and glorious, and the building was painted a magnificent shade of amber with white mixed in around the windows and multiple doors. Two flash cars around a ten metre high fountain just screamed wealth, and the front doors looked like they were bigger than the boat was. The grass was at an exact height, and hundreds of statues, flowerbeds and magnificent trees were scattered around the garden.

"This place is huuuuuge!" I said in admiration, but Frostbite shushed me. She had grabbed one of her guns, and I figured I should pull one of my handguns out as they looked easier to muster. That was when I heard a voice: we all turned around towards the fountain. Someone was giggling over the sound of the splashing water, and we moved swiftly but silently towards it.

"Horsea, stop it, you'll ruin my bikini!" I could tell Mr Williamson and Frostbite were smiling under their balaclavas as we had already found Selphy. I could see her beautiful hair glowing from underneath the statue of a marble Blastoise. I wasn't sure what they were going to do now, but Mr Williamson was moving forwards quickly.

"HALT!" He shouted suddenly, cutting through the gentle silence. Selphy screamed and turned around, and my jaw nearly dropped. She was wearing a bright blue bikini, showing her body off perfectly. I almost wanted to shoot Mr Williamson in order to save her, but Frostbite had already raced forwards with her gun raised.

"Who are you, what's going on?" Selphy screamed. I moved forwards and saw a Horsea was cowering behind her legs. Its huge, beautifully eyes made me feel terribly guilty, but I didn't know what else we were meant to do.

"We demand access to your Pokemon vaults!" Mr Williamson boomed. "Hand every Pokemon over without any drama and no one gets hurt!" Selphy nodded, and she nervously picked Horsea up and rushed to grab her towel.

"Hand Horsea over to our associate!" Frostbite hissed.

"Alright…." Selphy said sadly, and she rushed towards her. Her breast bounced as she did so and I nearly dropped the gun on the ground. Tears were streaming down her face, and Horsea began crying as she was passed over.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, making sure the others didn't hear. Selphy looked shocked, but she simply nodded and ran crying back towards her towel.

"Good girl," Mr Williamson said creepily. "Now, take us inside!"

That was when I heard a twig snap.

Instinctively I turned around and nearly screamed: three burly men with guns were walking towards us. There was the sound of an engine reeving and we all turned, watching as a golf buggy came racing up the driveway. Windows all over the house burst open and more men pointed their guns out of it.

"Oh shit…." Frostbite hissed. I turned around as more men appeared, unable to take this in: about fifty guns were pointed at us, and I knew that there was no way we could survive. Frostbite seemed frozen, but Mr Williamson grabbed Selphy by the arm and pulled her towards him, putting the gun to her head.

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS!" He shouted, but none of the men even twitched. My gun suddenly felt like a toy, and I held the Horsea cautiously, trying to think of a strategy. I reached towards my bag, fetching around inside it as I thought of a plan. The men closest to me looked ready to pull their triggers, but I had to do this. I knew which Pokemon would be perfect, and if it worked with the Horsea in my arms, I could possibly get us out of here.

But there was no denying this would turn into a bloodbath.


	5. Pal Park

**Pal Park**

"GO!"

The tense silence around me was suddenly shattered. Frostbite, Mr Williamson, Selphy and the guards all turned around as I threw the PokeBall into the sky. I knew that this was a risky move: if it went badly, I could find myself at the other end of Frostbite's gun. But for the time being, everyone's eyes were on the PokeBall. That was the problem of having Pokemon and weaponry coexisting: some Pokemon were immune to bullets, others weren't, but it could make the battle scenario very interesting.

This Pokemon certainly wasn't immune to bullets.

As the PokeBall burst open, a shower of stars was released with the usual flash of light and burst of energy. I looked down tensely, and saw Frostbite's eyes were practically hanging out of their sockets as she knew what was about to happen. I didn't care what she thought anymore. All I wanted to do was get the hell off this island and away from this lot before it was too late. The energy formed onto the ground, and I stared at it with my fingers crossed, hoping it would work…

"Karp."

My shiny Magikarp was still for a moment after he finished forming, but suddenly began flopping on the floor, gasping for breath. For a moment, the tension returned, all eyes going from my down towards the Magikarp. Than the laughter begun.  
>I hadn't heard laughter like this since the time a pretty girl at my school fell in the mud. The sound filling the air around me wasn't happy and joyous: it was cruel and mocking. The big burly guards with their guns were reduced to nothing more than immature high school boys, several of them doubling over as they laughed at me and my poor Magikarp. I knew what they were thinking, and I'd be laughing to if I was in their shoes: their captives sending a Magikarp out as their only chance of survival against nearly two dozen powerful guns. But I did have a proper plan. It may have only just come to me, but I had a gut feeling it would work. I hadn't used this Magikarp yet, and I didn't know what level it was, or how strong he was, but this was our only shot at escaping here alive.<p>

"Bounce!" I commanded. This was one thing I had learnt about the pitiful little water type was that it already have a Flying move with it. But as the flopping Magikarp turned lilac, the guards just laughed harder, one of them even collapsing to the ground.  
><em><br>Let them laugh! _I thought viciously, watching as Magikarp smashed a fin into the ground, causing him to fly high into the sky. _I'll be the one laughing in a minute! _But as this thought came to me, I felt something throbbing in my hands and looked down: Selphy's Horsea was chortling as well. _Great, even the next part of my plan thinks I'm a joke! _I noticed Frostbite and Mr Williamson weren't laughing, but were instead giving me nasty, glaring looks, wondering what the hell was happening. I simply smiled and winked, wondering how they felt to be out of the picture for once. It definitely served them right, and they were in for the shock of their lives if this worked out. Selphy, who was still in the clutches of Mr Williamson, was just scared out of her wits, wondering what was going on.

"MAAAAAAGIIIIII!" There was a violet flash above us, and I looked up as my Magikarp began to descend, not heading towards a clear target, simply falling towards the ground. I could see Frostbite tensing up, waiting for this plan to fail…

"Now, use Flail!" I shouted. The guards were laughing so hard that they didn't hear me, but they might have won this battle if they had: Magikarp only just came into eyesight when he suddenly began squirming around madly in mid air, as I had hoped for. The shining Pokemon was using the energy from the Bounce, and descended in a twirling motion before smacking directly into the face of a guard.

The surrounding guards stopped laughing as their comrade was blasted backwards by the force of the two attacks combined. But before they could react, Magikarp was blasted backwards by the force, and, using the built up Bounce energy, continued to Flail around the place. Mr Williamson ducked his head to avoid Magikarp after he hit three more guards directly in the face, causing another five to topple over. My plan was working perfectly, and I watched with glee as most of the men were sent flying backwards by the two attacks, taking more down with them. Most of the men in surrounding us had been knocked to the ground, while the men still inside the building were too busy laughing to have noticed.

"I knew this would work," I mumbled aloud, and stared down at the Horsea, who looked rather stunned. I simply poked my tongue out at her, making her narrow her eyes and glare back up at me.

"Brilliant plan Trevor!" Mr Williamson shouted excitedly, and I was secretly glad to be receiving the feedback: I had always wanted recognition, and was pleased that we now had a clear path back to the boat without spilling any blood.

"Shall we head off then?" I suggested, watching as Magikarp bounced off the hood of a guard's golf cart before flopping into the pool. "I mean, we've got Horsea, and we have the advantage now!" I saw the two exchange smirking looks before fidgeting around their belts. The two of them pulled grenades out and easily removed the pins. My eyes bulged at the sight of this, and I saw Selphy's jaw drop as the green devices were hurled towards the open windows of the mansion.

"Sorry Archer, but we need more than just one water type!" Frostbite laughed as she grabbed two of the machine guns from off her back. I was completely horrified, and I could feel my insides nearly disappearing from me. These people were more monstrous than I originally thought… they were going to kill these people for no real reason, even though they were lying on the ground. I stood there frozen, unable to believe what I was seeing… I had to stop them… I couldn't let these people die…  
>But my thoughts were suddenly interrupted by two very sudden explosions. I turned around in shock as the orange and black clouds of fire tore through the middle floor of the mansion. Guards were sent flying, their clothes alight, arms or legs being torn from their body, across the lawn as if they were bits of rubble. I was gobsmacked, and wanted to run across and help them, but my legs felt like lead, somehow unable to move.<p>

"GET OUT OF THE WAY ARCHER!" Frostbite screeched towards me, and my head turned just as she opened fire: she and Mr Williamson were back to back, taking on opposite sides of the guards, their bullets blasting out of their guns in a burst of light, flame and noise. I shut my eyes, not bearing to see what was in front of me, but I could still hear the bullets tearing through the skulls of the guards, hearing others let out screams of shock and despair.

"Horsea Horsea Hoooors!" I opened my eyes slightly, feeling several bullets shells whacking against my legs, and saw that Horsea was squirming in fear. I wondered where Selphy had got to, and I quickly glanced around, refusing to stay down and look at the corpses. Isabella and Mr Williamson were moving so quickly none of the guards had a chance to react, all just lying ducks. I looked at the mansion and saw that a fire was still roaring inside, possibly going to consume the entire house if it was left to continue.

"Horsea Sea Horse!" Horsea pointed with her curled tail towards the fountain, and my eyesight quickly followed: Selphy was laying the water with her eyes shut, her face as pale as a ghost and her entire body shaking. Mr Williamson must have let her go in order to use both machine guns, and the fountain must be a safe place for the heiress. I noticed she was clutching my Magikarp in her arms, and I smirked slightly at the irony of it. More gunshots sounded around me, and I turned around just as a bullet flew past me, causing my hairs to stand on end: a guard had gotten his gun back, and was ready to fight Frostbite and Mr Williamson, and apparently me!

"Shit!" I cursed, and quickly sprinted forwards. I couldn't stand here in the line of fire unleash I desperately wanted to die, so running was the only option. I leapt between Isabella and Mr Williamson, who didn't even notice me as they turned to find the fighting back guard. I barely even noticed where I was going, too busy trying to avoid looking at the dead guards with the bullet holes in their heads. I probably should have paid attention, as a second later I felt my shins smash into concrete.

"GAAAAH!" I exclaimed, as I toppled face first into the fountain. Horsea flew from my hands as I put my arms up, stopping me from getting a face fill of concrete. Instead, my head barely touched the water, and for only a few seconds I was left gasping for breath before pushing myself out and shaking my head.

"Hello Selphy," I mumbled, wiping water off my face so I could see. Selphy had cowered up right next to the statue of Blastoise, which had stopped releasing water from its cannons. She put Magikarp back in the water, who instantly began thrashing about again, and grabbed Horsea and gave her a hug.

"Who are you people?" Selphy hissed, trying to keep her voice calm. "What do you want from me?" My mind began to race as I struggled to think up an answer. There was no way I could tell her the truth: I didn't want her to die, and if she knew what company we were, she would surely rush to the police and report the whole thing. I could see the headlines: **THE POKEMON CATCHERS REVEALED TO BE NOTHING MORE THAN FILTHY, ROTTEN THIEVES. **The company would be closed. I'd lose my job, but more importantly, I'd lose my shot at helping humanity. These incidents over the past few days have made me more determined to fix issues in the world, and I can't do that unless the company gets back on track.

"I have no idea who these people are," I explained, a lie quickly formulating in my head, "I just met them this morning. They kidnapped me and want me to help them steal your Pokemon!" Selphy looked shocked, and I was pleased to that it was at least believable. It practically was what happened to me, though I figured I'd leave out the part were they forced me to drive off a cliff.

"That's terrible!" Selphy said. "These people are truly monsters! Look at my poor…" But Selphy stopped there, and I noticed her lip was beginning to tremble, a tear forming in her eyes. I felt awful for what we were doing, and I wanted to find a way to stop it.

"Listen: you need to get out of here, pronto!" I explained quietly, though I doubted they could hear me over the sounds of their guns. . "I don't know how, but you need to leave the property before they try and take your Pokemon!" Selphy nodded, stroking Horsea's head as she tried to hold her emotions down.

"Horse Horsea Seeeeea?" Horsea said, and Selphy's face lit up.

"That's right!" The heiress replied excitedly, and she turned around to face the base the statue was on. It appeared to just by a circular block of concrete, but I was stunned as Selphy pressed against it, causing a tiny crinking sound. A panel slid away with a thunk, revealing a mobile phone sized keyboard and a series of buttons.

"What is that?" I asked, gobsmacked by this intricate device.

"It's an emergency system in case the guards fail," Selphy explained as she typed several passwords in. The water in the fountain suddenly began to drain away, and I quickly grabbed onto my Magikarp before he disappeared. I could hear the continued gunfire in the background, and it sounded like more guards were joining the battle. I wanted to turn around and check, but I was captivated by what Selphy was doing: could this be the key to me escaping alive?

"When I press this button, you just need to run, okay?" Selphy said, and pointed at the biggest, brightest red button there was. "Any guards these disgusting monsters haven't killed will start running as well, so you won't be alone," She finished explaining, and glanced back towards her house. I looked behind as well and felt my heart droop. The mansion was still burning, and my prediction that it would spread was right: I could see flames dancing behind the windows in the lower and upper floors. A dead guard was still hanging over the edge of where the middle floor window should be, and it was a truly repulsive site. I heard Selphy let out a sob, and turned to see tears streaming down her gorgeous face.

"Hey, it'll be al-" I began to say, reaching out to give her a reassuring pat, but Selphy nearly batted my hand away.

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" She said, wiping the tears away and turning away from her burning house. "There'll be ten seconds for you to run after I press the button, but we need to make it look like you haven't helped me," and before I could agree or say anything, Selphy grabbed one of the unused guns strapped to my back and yanked it off its strap. I was going to ask what she was doing when she suddenly swung it, smashing the handle into my face.

"You filthy scum!" Selphy shrieked as I collapsed sideways, tasting blood in my mouth. She winked and giggled slightly at me, and than jammed her palm against the red button. It let out a squeaking sound and began flashing, and Selphy winked at me again as she slid backwards. "Good luck, hope you escape in time!" She called, and, still clutching her Horsea, suddenly disappeared through a hole in the fountain. I was shocked, but I presumed it was the plug she had mentioned. But there was no time to worry: I had about seven seconds until whatever was happening happened.

"RUN!" I screamed, not knowing what else to do. I leapt over the side of the fountain and quickly brought Magikarp back. Frostbite and Mr Williamson turned at me, their guns still aimed at about five surviving guards. "Selphy pressed some button! We had to leave NOW!" I noticed the guards cursing as I said this, dropping their weapons and fleeing towards their golf carts. I guessed they knew what button she had pressed, and what it did.

"You let her escape!" Mr Williamson gasped, looking thunderstruck. I couldn't care about their mission anymore, and I knew we'd be dead if we didn't escape in time. I angrily spat blood onto his black wetsuit, leaving a hideous mark as I ran.

"She hit me, but I really couldn't give a crap anymore!" I snapped. "She's done something and we need to get out of here, now!" Mr Williamson looked like he wanted to kill me, so I looked at Isabella instead. My boss looked rather concerned at what I had to say, and I hoped that my old idol would at least agree with me. I was going to run anyway, but I didn't want to be the only one.

"I'm going with the boy," She said at last, and I was rather happy about that. "The guards have left so we have no one to shoot, and if Selphy has left than there's no point staying." Mr Williamson looked furious, and I could tell he didn't like this sort of defiance.

"Well, if we're going, we better go now!" I said, and I quickly began running. Isabella quickly ran up alongside me, and I smiled briefly at her. She didn't return, but her eyes twinkled in a mysterious fashion. A moment later Mr Williamson appeared to my left, looking furious.

"I'm only coming because I'm not staying behind by myself," He said, "but would you mind explaining what Selphy is meant to have done? I don't hear any explosions, I don't see any laser beams being fired at us. What is she meant to have done?" I pondered this for a second: had Selphy just said something was going to happen in order to scare me away? Were we just running for nothing?

Than we heard the groan.

Despite the fact we were fleeing for our lives, all three of us stopped and turned around. The groan sounded again, and our heads turned towards the giant stone Blastoise. It looked like any ordinary statue, but why was it groaning? A million reasons rushed through my head, but they all came to a stop when the Blastoise did something: it moved.

"It's a robot…" I mumbled, watching horror struck as the Blastoise's huge concrete legs began to walk forwards. Dust trickled from is body as it turned its head, rotated its arm, flexed its cannons. His eyes suddenly turned a vivid red, and the head turned directly towards us. I knew what it was meant to do know: it was a guardian, designed to eliminate any intruders that could be removed otherwise.

"Why is it staring towards us?" Isabella whispered, her voice cracking slightly in fear. I turned to look at the two of them and was startled to see both of them looked fearful: they obviously hadn't expected to encounter a robotic concrete Blastoise either. Their plan had failed miserably, and we were now going to possibly be murdered by this creature.

"I think we should run…" I mumbled. I didn't like the way the eyes were staring at us, as if it was sensing our presence. Mr Williamson tutted, and he grabbed one of his handguns from his pocket.

"I say we defeat it!" He laughed, and fired a bullet. The bang nearly made me jump, but as I looked across the garden, it appeared the bullet hadn't done a thing to the Blastoise. Instead, the creature let out another loud growl, and its cannons were suddenly pointed towards us.

"I think we should run!" I repeated, this time shouting, and I turned just as the Blastoise began to fire. I briefly saw two huge black balls being fired, and Isabella and Mr Williamson began sprinting after me a second later. We had only run past the corner of the mansion when the cannonballs landed behind us. They exploded upon hitting the ground, and I was sent flying forwards, a searing pain on my back. The three of us crash landed into a heap about ten metres away, and my entire body shook from the impact. However, I quickly realised I hadn't been blown to pieces: I examined the wet suits identical to mine the other two were wearing, and they only had a slight singe to them.

"Good thing we added those fireproof fibres in," Isabella groaned.

"There isn't time to think about that, we need to get out of here quickly!" Mr Williamson growled, and he pulled a tiny little box out of a pocket. I had seen it back on the boat, and I wondered what it was going to be used for. But Isabella suddenly screamed, and I turned around to see the Blastoise was running towards us, its mouth open wide and clinking sounds echoing from it as the cannons reloaded.

"RUN!" I screamed again, and the three of us leapt up and sprinted for our lives. We were getting closer to the edge of the island, the crystal clear water coming into view. But there was no way we'd be able to run down the stairs and get to the boat in time: we'd be slaughtered before we got to half way.

"We can't go down the stairs, we need to jump into the water!" I shouted over the booming thuds of the running statue. I pulled my machine guns off and fired them aimlessly behind me. My entire body shook as the bullets were fired, and it sounded like most of them were just rebounding off the hard concrete shell of the statue.

"CAMERON, DO IT NOW!" Isabella roared besides me, and I briefly had no clue who she was talking about. But I quickly worked out Mr Williamson had to have a first name, and I stared at him as he nodded, glancing backwards in fear towards the Blastoise. The cliff was getting closer, and I knew that in seconds we'd have to jump over it. What if we landed on a boat, or rocks? I knew from school that you could die even jumping onto empty water, or at least break a limb. Would the jump be that bad? What if Blastoise blew our heads off before we could? All these thoughts rushed through my mind, but I could see that we were only seconds away from leaping. Blastoise roared behind us, and I knew it'd be firing the cannons in a few moments. I couldn't worry about dying now. I'd survived falling off a cliff earlier today, and hadn't been shot at all today… maybe my luck was finally changing.

"JUUUUMP!" Isabella screamed, and I obeyed the command, feeling my feet leave the ground. There was a feeling of wind as I left the ground behind, and I tried not to stare down at the huge drop below. I could feel my heart dropping, while it felt like my stomach might come up through my mouth. _I'm going to die, I'm going to die, I'm going to die, I'm going to-_

Than Mr Williamson pressed the button in the box.

Instantly, Selphy's mansion exploded.

I couldn't contain my fear anymore and let out a scream as the wave of energy sent me soaring forwards. I was sent spinning by the force, crashing into Isabella and Mr Williamson, both of them spinning as well. My eyes were ringing, I could feel wind howling around me, and bits of rubble felt like bullets as they whacked into me.

As I spun, I saw the mansion. The fabulous, beautiful structure had been destroyed, the walls now laying as bits of concrete across the lawn, which was also on fire from the blast. The Blastoise hadn't survived the explosion either: the concrete shell toppled over the side of the cliff, missing a head, both cannons and an arm.

The structure of the mansion collapsed, tipping into the fire as I was spun back around. The crystal clear water was reflected the fist of the explosion, and I could see the water being shaken by the Blastoise. Robert's boat was directly blow us, and I thought for a fearful second that we were going to crash straight into it. But the force of the explosion was enough for us to move above the watercraft, straight towards the ocean. The water was choppy now, but I knew that it wouldn't be safe. Struggling against the wind coming from the fall, I reached into my bag and pulled out a PokeBall.

"Vaporeon!" I tried to shout, but my voice lost me. The ball burst open, and I barely watched as the energy hit the water, my Vaporeon rising up through the waves. I was beginning to descend now, the ocean coming at me much quicker and faster than before. My organs were all being mixed together, my limbs were flailing, my head felt like it was going to be torn off.

"Vapor!" I heard Vaporeon cry, but I had shut my eyes, only a few metres away from impact…..

A few seconds later, I felt the water consume me.

My body shook as it had when the cannon had exploded, and it somehow felt more painful. I hadn't realised the wet suit had been struck by the building exploding, yet I could feel it splitting, unable to withstand anymore pressure. Water began to seep in, and it felt like it was weighing me down. But I really couldn't care: my entire body was in pain from all that had happened today, and the pressure of water on my head wasn't helping. I couldn't breathe, and I couldn't master the strength to get up to the surface. I felt something touch me… I felt something wrapping around my legs… but I couldn't stay here any longer… I shut my eyes… I could feel myself drifting off into a well deserved rest…

_Images flashed before my mind, almost as if my life was flashing before my eyes. Was I dying… was I just reflecting __… or was I just imagining … I didn't really care … I just enjoyed the peace …  
>A Nurse Joy's face appeared before me, looking sad and solemn.<br>"I'm sorry Trevor, but there's nothing I can do for either of these Pokemon … the injuries are permanent…"_

_My father was glaring down at me, his face twisted with fury, a hand raised in his rage.  
>"I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR JOURNEY! NONE OF US DO! IF YOU FAILED, IT'S YOUR OWN DAMN FAULT!"<em>

_I was running through long grass, tears streaming down my face, a full moon lighting my path. I couldn't remember why I was running, but I know I had to get away from here, get as far away from this place as possible… I didn't see where I was going… I stumbled and heard a squawk behind me. I turned, still crying, my entire body shaking, and watched as Pidgey rose up from the grass, glaring at me.  
>"Pidgey Pidge Pidgey!" It cried, looking down at its wing.<br>"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!" I whimpered in response. I couldn't contain my emotions, and collapsed to my knees. I was distraught about something, but I couldn't remember what. I felt a soft breeze, and glanced up, my eyes fill of water, to see the Pidgey, hovering in front of me, a look of concern on its face.  
>"I'm fine… I'm fine…" I said, and felt the soft feathered wing touch my face, wiping away my tears. "I'm fine … I'm fine … I'm fine … I'm fine…"<br>_"Trevor…."  
><em>I'm fine … I'm fine …<br>_"Trevor…."

_I'm fine  
><em>"TREVOR!"

I awoke with a start.

As soon as my eyes opened, I began to realise the immense pain I was in. My back hurt like hell, and my head felt like something hard was pressing my brain together. I couldn't remember what had happened straight away, but my memories came flooding back to me within seconds: the battle, Selphy, the Blastoise, the mansion exploding, and crashing towards the water. I expected my clothes to be soaking wet, but when I looked down, I saw I was only wearing the black boxers I had put on that morning… or yesterday… or last week, for all I knew: I didn't know where I was, where anyone else was, what day, time or year it was!

I stared around the room I was in. It was plain and white: nothing particularly special about it. It was small and square, with only one light bulb dangling above my head, no windows, and a door that was barely visible. The walls seemed to be made of glass or plastic, whilst the floor was cold tiles. Than I remembered the voice: someone else had to be here! But as I looked all around, my eyes squinting due to the harsh light, I couldn't see anyone else who would have said my voice.

"I don't need this," I mumbled as I slumped back against the wall. My head was still pounding, and I could barely move my arms without getting sharp pains. I didn't need to or want to think about who was saying twisted things in my ear, or if I was losing my marbles and imagining it.

"Now Trevor, I thought you would have learnt our tricks by now," A voice hissed, followed by loud, drawling laughter. I looked around for the source of the voice, completely startled now. The laughter continued as I turned around frantically, trying to avoid the pain in my head. Suddenly, the wall that I'd been laying against disappeared… well, almost. Instead of being bright white, the wall suddenly turned transparent.  
>Mr Williamson, or Cameron, I could say, was standing right next to it, smiling widely. He was wearing one of his fancy suits and only had a slight cut under his eye as a remnant of the battle. Frostbite was standing behind him, also back into her ocean blue dress suit, and showing a few more cuts and bruises on her face. She wasn't smiling, rather looking unsure and nervous about the situation.<p>

"It's good to finally see your awake, Mr Archer," Mr Williamson said, and I noticed for the first time that the voice sounded odd and distant, as if it was coming from behind something thick…

"What happened after we got in the water?" I asked, and then I suddenly remembered Vaporeon: I had sent him out before I become submerged. "Where are my Pokemon, are they alright?" Mr Williamson simply smirked, and fear began to rush through my body. Had he stolen my Pokemon while I was unconscious? Were they going to sell all of them as part of their twisted scheme? My body began to shake from worry, and Mr Williamson just laughed louder.

"Your Pokemon are safe Mr Archer," He chuckled, and moved aside. My jaw dropped and my heart sank as I stared at what was there. Seven large glass tubes were attached to the wall in front of me, which was surprisingly dark and made of stone compared to the cube I was in. But I was more interested in what was inside the tubes: all of my Pokemon were floating inside them, bobbing above the bottom by some sort of invisible force. I began to shake again as I stared along the row, my mind racing and tears beginning to form: Vaporeon, Pidgeotto, Gligar, Magikarp and….

_I was instantly back in the cave. Rocks were continuing to batter my back, pinning my young body to the ground. I could barely move, but I was forcing myself to crawl along the dirty floor, ignoring the pain in my left leg where I'd been cut. A dim flame was all that was guided me forwards: the dying light of my Charizard, lying pinned beneath the rocks._

_"Ch-Ch-Chariz-z-z-zard!" I whimpered, unable to control the tears pouring down my face, mixing with the dirt and dust. Charizard was nearly entombed, his wings trapped stretched out beneath all of the jagged boulders. Only the end of his tail and his head were poking through. His eyes were half shut, and I could feel him beginning to leave…_

_"Charizard, d-don't leave m-m-me!" I wailed desperately. Charizard's head turned slowly in my direction, and a low, deep grunt emitted from deep within him. He was alive, at least for now. But he couldn't stay here… none of us could. The cave roof was about to crush us to death, and we had to hurry out of here if we wanted to survive. I reached towards my bag, my entire body shaking with fear. I was about to grasp onto the PokeBalls when I saw something move out of the corner of my eye. I squealed and ducked my head just in time, as something large, round and metallic smashed into the rocks behind me._

_"E-E-Electrode…?" I whispered fearfully. A fizzing sound filled the air around me, and fear struck me again as I turned around. Electrical sparks lit up the cave as my Electrode lay on the rocks, sparking away in an unhealthy manner. I could tell Electrode was clearly unconscious, and the sparks revealed more wounds: there seemed to be several small dents in Electrode's tough shell, and there seemed to be a ten centimetre scratch mark down the side._

_"No, not you too!" I wailed, and ran forwards to give Electrode a hug. But the energy being released blasted me backwards, sending me spiralling backwards onto the large rocks. I groaned as the pain shot through my back, but I couldn't care about myself: two of my Pokemon were seriously injured, and another was somewhere out there, his fate I didn't know. I needed to find a way out of here, I needed to leave and find help as soon as possible.  
><em>_  
>"So, given up yet?" I cried out as the voice sounded around me, and I turned around frightfully: the murderous man in the suit was above me, his face still hidden by shadow. His gun was in his hand, pointed directly for me. Any courage I had left failed me, and I began to shake worse than ever: I was going to die, right here and now.<em>

_"HERACROSS!" I wailed desperately, but the man simply laughed at my attempts to save myself._

_"Your Heracross will be left horrifically damaged like the rest of your pathetic team," the man chuckled, and he pointed many metres away. I turned, causing pain in my back, and saw the scene: the Electabuzz was duelling furiously with Heracross, Electric attacks lighting up the rocky surroundings. I could see how determined Heracross looked from here, swinging his arms madly and trying to strike Electabuzz down._

"_Valiant, but your Pokemon need serious improvement," the man said, and began laughing again. I felt like I was going to shatter I was shaking so much._

"_Please… please don't kill me… please don't hurt my Pokemon anymore…" I whimpered, shutting my eyes and raising my hands up. The man suddenly stopped laughing, and a second later I found my head being pressed against the rocks._

_"I'm going to tell you a little story," The man hissed in my ear. "Many people are curious as too why we have guns in our world, when we have so many wonderful creatures that could take up the position. Pokemon are brilliant, ingenious monsters that we are able to control, but there is one thing they can't do: kill! Yes, Pokemon have big scary teeth, big scary teeth, some can even cause enough damage to bring buildings down. But Pokemon are messy. They have been adapted to not harm humans, but when they do, it becomes gruesome mauling and raises huge suspicion. I have trained my Pokemon to cause significant damage, as you'll see with your Electrode, but they still can't unleash the perfect murder._

_And we also need guns to make things more even. When you are trying to stop a villain, what if they have more powerful Pokemon than the police? The police can't just stand there, fiddling around with Revives and Potions whilst the robbers get away. Guns and weaponry make things more even. They take up the slack that Pokemon can't quite handle. We rely too much on our Pokemon, but we have made our Pokemon weak, so we need guns to make ourselves better._

_Now, I'm not going to kill you. I don't think any sort of bullet wound will do much harm to you. Your Pokemon are lying scattered around you, so injured that they may be close to dying. You understand not to cross me, and you understand that if you report what you saw today, you will find yourself buried under these rocks instead of your Charizard, am I clear?"_

_"Y-y-y-es…" I mumbled, my tears getting worse. The man let go of me, and I slowly opened my eyes, which were so fill of water I could barely see out of them. The man was walking away, raising some form of PokeBall and bringing his Electabuzz back._

_"Just remember this boy: if you find yourself in a life or death situation, what would you rather rely on. You're Pokemon, or a weapon?"_

I blinked my eyes several times, wondering if I had blacked out for a minute. Mr Williamson and Frostbite were exchanging curious looks, the former no longer laughing. I ignored them, and stared straight towards the last three tubes. Charizard was nearly breaking the tube he was in, his long, severely wounded wings wrapped tightly around himself. Whilst I had let him out recently, Electrode and Heracross hadn't been out of their PokeBalls for many, many years. Electrode still had the dents across his body, and the scratch marks had faded but were still faintly visible, a constant reminder of the pain the mysterious man's Golem left. Finally, Heracross looked like he could be asleep, but if you counted the wounds he had, you might think he was dead: electric burns across his front and back, his horn slightly bent and his right leg at a very odd angle compared to the rest of his body. The wounds were permanent, and no one had been able to heal them: no nurses, no professors, nobody… constant reminders to myself about evil, violence and destruction.

"Anyway….," Mr Williamson said, cutting off my chain of thoughts before it could even begin, "your Pokemon are perfectly safe and sound in here. Once we got you up onto the boat, we stripped you in order to prevent hypothermia, and took your stuff away. Your Vaporeon got a bit violent towards us, so we had no choice but to bring him back." I stared at the weird tubes, wondering why my Pokemon were all in there. Was this part of some new plan, or was it maybe a punishment…

"Why are you doing this to them?" I asked desperately, my hands up against the plastic. I wanted to be able to free my Pokemon from there, let them out and get away from here. I didn't like the look of what was going on, especially after what had happened back at Selphy's mansion.

"Don't worry Mr Archer, your Pokemon will be returned to you in time," Mr Williamson replied, a smirk upon his face. "Your Pokemon are going to be here for a little while, as will you be. We need to sort a few thins out following this failed mission, and then we have another one to get on with."

"WHAT!" I yelled as my jaw dropped in shock. "You're going on another mission? How do you expect to manage that? You  
>couldn't even take on some silly little rich girl at her mansion, and you-" but I froze there, as Frostbite suddenly slammed her fist on a button in the wall. The tubes flashed, and suddenly my Pokemon were wincing and squirming, their faces twisted in pain. There were being tortured, punishment for my outburst. Unable to control myself, I ran towards the door and banged my fists on it, trying to break it down. I needed to free my Pokemon, I needed to get them away from this place.<p>

"SIT BACK DOWN!" Mr Williamson roared, and he pressed another button, this one on the wall. I was blasted backwards, an electrical current surging through me. My body ached even more, and I couldn't do anything except slid down against the glass, my head rolling.

"Now you listen here Archer," Mr Williamson hissed, his voice sounded a lot clearer, "that was a nearly perfect mission we had going on. The guards at first were a setback, but your plan with the Magikarp was very smart, and it's the only reason we didn't leave you back in the mansion. But instead of helping us with the guards, you just ran away and left us to fight them on our own. And you were even talking to Selphy with all your weapons, and you let her escape set her Blastoise on us!" I knew why they were angry: I should have killed Selphy, let the innocent girl die (despite what I said a minute ago, I did feel sorry for what we did to her) and than stolen all her Pokemon! But there was no way I could've done that. I would never take another innocent life without a good enough reason, and fuelling their evil plans wasn't good enough in my opinion.

"I wasn't going to kill her!" I said quietly, still in pain from the shock. "She was innocent, and I didn't know that the Blastoise would do that. Selphy didn't have to die, she-"

"Oh come on Trevor!" Frostbite spoke for the first time since I'd woken up. Her voice was shaking slightly, and I was wondering what had frazzled her so much. As she walked forwards, I noticed that she didn't look as neat as she usually did: there was no make up on her face, allowing her wrinkles to be shown in the dim light, and her dress suit looked rather scruffy. Yet Frostbite still came to Mr Williamson's side, looking down at me like I was dirt on her shoe. "Face the facts boy: everyone has to die at some point! That little troll has led a pretty decent life based on that mansion we destroyed, so I highly doubt she'd miss out on anymore life experiences. Now, you can take the moral high ground if that's how you want to live, but all you did was extend Selphy's life much longer, taking away all that opportunity that some other people are probably far more deserving to receive it."

"It was the right thing to do!" I snapped back, getting to my feet and glaring back at her through the plastic. I didn't care she was my boss, I didn't care that she had helped with my brother, at the moment I just wanted to strangle her. "Clearly unlike you two, I believe in morals and doing what is best for not just myself but other people!"

"Morals are all well and good, Trevor, but you can't just base moral values for everything!" Frostbite growled. "You may think it's immoral to take another life, but what if that person is a vicious killer in a flawed justice system, about to slay your family? You may think it's immoral to steal, but what if you and your family will die without food, money, clothing that you can only get from another source? You should put the moral to the specific situation, not hold it as a firm belief! In this situation, you should have killed Selphy and saved you and your Pokemon's own skins! You'd be a free man right now if you had just shot that little rich bitch!"

"Alright then!" Mr Williamson pushed Frostbite backwards, preventing us from continuing our rant. "I think we have all said enough! Mr Archer, we will come back for you when our next phase is ready. But so you don't disturb anyone, we will be filling your room with a special gas that will keep you asleep for as long as necessary," and before I could say anything, Mr Williamson pressed another button to the side. He walked away as nozzles appeared in the ceiling, releasing a hissing noise as the gas was released. Mr Williamson walked off, but Frostbite lingered for a while. I glared back at her, wondering what was going on inside her mind. But the woman quickly walked off, leaving me slumped against the wall. It was slowly turning back to white as the gas filled the chamber. I was beginning to feel sleepy… I wanted to be with my Pokemon… I couldn't leave them… but I was falling asleep… there was nothing I could do… it was time… to go… to bed…

_39 hours later…_

"Wakey wakey Mr Archer…"

My eyes opened suddenly, as if I had only just closed them briefly. It did feel like I'd only just slumped against the wall of my cell a second ago, but my surroundings had completely changed.

For one thing, I was wearing clothes: a button up green floral shirt and brown cargo pants, with a camera strapped around my neck. I had seen this sort of get up for years across Sevii, and I knew I had been made to look like a typical tourist. As I examined my new clothing, I realised that I wasn't inside the white cube anymore, but the surroundings were familiar: it was one of the Pokemon Catcher boats. It looked the same as always, even with some of PCM Ball's on the table and one of the metal data rods. But there were other things here as well: knives and guns of varying shapes and sizes, a belt full of grenades, and a large black back pack that looked rather ominous. I knew what was going on: it was time for the second mission.

"Ah good, your awake. That gas works very well: we must use it more often."  
>I turned around at the sound of the voice and watched as Frostbite strutted past me, wearing a look of pure delight on her face. She was dressed in a similar outfit to me, except her flora shirt was purple and there was no camera around her neck. She looked odd and uncomfortable in this different outfit, a bit too casual for her. But I didn't really care about our clothes at the moment.<p>

"What's going on?" I asked, sitting up in the couch. "How long have I been asleep? Where are we going? Where are my  
>Pokemon?" Frostbite simply smirked at my questions, sitting quite comfortably on a seat opposite me.<p>

"So many questions…," She smirked, clearly enjoying my annoyance. "Well, I'll start with the easiest question. It's been a while since we left you… nearly forty hours, I'd say?" My jaw dropped as she said this, completely shocked: nearly forty hours I'd been asleep! I'd never heard of anyone sleeping that long! That strange gas was pretty powerful, I hadn't even dreamt or thought about anything for all that time!

"As for your Pokemon, Robert has them on him upstairs," Frostbite continued. I made a note of how Robert was still a part of this plan, and I would have to ask him about it later. "Your Pokemon will be returned to you once we arrive at our destination," Frostbite continued, and her smile got even wider. I knew why she was happy: she had gotten my interest now by mentioning the location. I didn't care if it was giving her a sick, twisted sense of glee. I just wanted to know where we were heading from, and where we were going to.

"How long have we been at sea," I asked, "and where are we heading to?"

"We left Boon Island about ten minutes ago," Frostbite replied, and I was shocked.

"So… I was on Boon Island while I was asleep?" I asked, and Frostbite let out a cruel, icy laugh.

"Trevor, you were in the Pokemon Catcher's building the whole time!" She replied, giggling maliciously. "That basement room was constructed for punishment situations, but we've never been able to use it yet. Though, judging by the success of your perfect sleep, we may just use it again later!" Frostbite continued to laugh, and I was tempted to grab one of the knives and threaten her with it. But there was no telling what secret weapons she possessed, and I didn't particularly want to test her.

"And, as there's no point hiding it from you any longer, we are going towards Fuchsia City, in the Kanto region," Frostbite explained. I simply nodded, my mind beginning to race as I remembered everything I knew about Fuchsia City. It had the only poison gym leader that I knew of. They use to have a Safari Zone there, but it closed down after they relocated to a bigger lot in the Johto region. What had been put there instead… a factory?... no, not that… something to do with catching… they had one in Sinnoh…

"The Pal Park!" I cried out, and I turned to see Frostbite nodding, tapping her fingers together in a very Mr Burns manner.

"Your going to steal Pokemon from the Pal Park, aren't you?"

"Good job!" Frostbite said in the manner of congratulating a toddler, but my shock overruled my anger. The Pal Park was a very popular place… what were they going to do? "The Pal Park is a major attraction: friends send Pokemon over to their friends, and they have to try and catch them in a fun, game environment," Frostbite began to explain. "These activities attract great interest, and up to ten games may be played at once. Trainers are given special PokeBalls that their intended Pokemon to catch have been put in, and they must beat a time limit travelling around the park, trying to catch all six Pokemon. As well as getting their six Pokemon, they may get other prizes depending on how well they did."

"Are you getting to the point?" I snapped, and Frostbite shot me a glaring look. For a moment, I was pleased to have pissed her off, but than watched in shock as she pulled a wooden handle out of her cargo shorts pocket and than flipped it, revealing a shiny, two inch knife.

"May I continue?" She asked, and I nodded fearfully. "Today is a very special day. The Pal Park wants to beat a record the Sinnoh one set for most people taking part in one day, so hundreds have turned up for the event! We have seen security footage, and there are already about two hundred people packing the halls. Leaf, that infamous second-best poster girl and Red's girlfriend, is going to be opening the event with Janine, the Fuchsia Gym Leader, in one hour." I nodded, drawing all of this information in. I knew of Leaf: granddaughter of Professor Oak, girlfriend to Kanto League Champion Red, cousin of Viridian Gym Leader Blue, frequent promoter and special guest due to a mild fame status. She was meant to be rather nice and friendly, and a very good battler as well (she did have two legendaries, after all). Janine was a relatively new gym leader, so I didn't know much about her asides that she was the old leader's, Koga, daughter.

"Are we going to be killing anyone in the hall?" I asked cautiously.

"Only if we absolutely have to," Frostbite replied simply. "I'd quite like to get my hands on Leaf though: all those nice strong Pokemon, as well as Articuno and Raikou…" Frostbite drifted off, a greedy look in her eyes. I noticed that she seemed to have calmed down a lot since when we last met, and I couldn't help wonder what the cause of that was. I guess the stress of the failed mission on the mansion had been too much.

"Anyway," Frostbite said, shaking her head and recovering herself, "once the people in the hall are subdued, we will go into the field and capture the Pokemon, which should be released if our plan works correctly. The PCM Balls will override the Pal Park Balls, and we'll easily capture them. We have two helicopters coming in with some other agents to help us with the capturing, and than we'll head back with them once it's over," Frostbite finished explaining. I stared out through the deck windows, taking all of it in. It sounded like they had planned out a smoother operation. I didn't know how they planned on getting this to work, but it seemed that they had sorted things out. But that was what was worrying me: what lengths were they going to go to, just to get all of these Pokemon?

"This plan is definitely going to work… it'll be bigger, better, grander than that mansion…" Frostbite had begun mumbling in a rather maniacal manner, and I was rather uneasy about how odd she was acting. "I'll make back all that money we lost… this plan can't fail, no… it won't fail!"

"Um… how long until we get to Fuchsia?" I asked awkwardly, afraid of how oddly Isabella was acting.

"Not long now… we're moving at hyper speed, didn't you notice?" She replied quickly, using the same strained, strange tone. I simply nodded and stared back out the window. I could see now that the many sea rocks that were littered in these parts were simply dull blurs zooming past the boat. It had been ten minutes since we had left Boon, so I expected us to be getting there soon, judging by how fast the boat was going.

We simply sat there in silence for the rest of the trip. I didn't really want to think about what was coming ahead. All the innocent Pokemon being stolen from innocent trainers… and who knew what Frostbite was planning to do in the hall! I couldn't help but worry about how extreme it might be, and I knew it wouldn't be as simple as them gassing the place. I didn't want anyone to get hurt, especially after all the guards they killed. I wondered if Selphy had managed to get to the police yet, though I doubt she'd be able to give them any real evidence: masked people in black suits didn't give them much to go by, especially as the explosion probably destroyed her security systems.

"It's nearly time!" Frostbite said dramatically after nearly five minutes of silence. I nodded and stood up, my legs shaking slightly. Frostbite put the knifes in a backpack, and then took several of the grenades from the belt and put them into a separate pocket. I wasn't sure if this was safe, but I decided it was better not to question her. I looked out the window and realised we had slowed down: we were going past a small yet very sandy beach, right next to the dazzling blue sea behind it. It was quite a lovely image, but the beach and ocean suddenly disappeared behind some huge boulders, and I realised, with shock, that we must have arrived.

"It's the Fuchsia Port," Frostbite said, "a small fishing port so used so that people don't have to travel back to Vermillion." I simply nodded, not really caring about the history of the place: I just wanted to get this over with. There was a slight thud as the boat came to a stop, nearly causing me to tip over.

"Alright then, let's go!" Isabella said excitedly, and I simply nodded, a sick feeling in my stomach. We headed out of the deck doors and along the deck, heading towards the gangplank. I was shaking with nerves, wondering what sick twisted plan Frostbite had planned. But all that disappeared as I saw Robert. Anger swelled up inside of me as the captain looked up at me, his face hung and moody.

"Thank you Robert," Frostbite said sweetly, and practically skipped down the gangplank and onto the wooden jetty. I didn't say a word. I couldn't bring myself to speak to him, angry that he had sold out. But as I tried to walk past, desperate to get away, he grabbed onto my shoulder.

"You aren't the only one they have something on," the aging captain hissed, and than gave me a little shove to keep me walking. I was completely shocked by this: were Frostbite and Mr Williamson threatening everyone working on this job? Were they even threatening each other? I feel sick at myself for being angry at Robert, and wondered what they were holding against him. But my feet had carried me to the bottom of the gangplank, and Frostbite wrapped her left arm around mine.

"Come on then hot stuff, we have a job to do!" She whispered in my ear before giggling loudly and shrilly. I was sick at this, but couldn't say anything, and instead looked around at the Fuchsia. There were several other boats in this wooden and stone jetty, most of them fishing vehicles that smelt awful. The two of us walked quickly past stacks of melting crates and burly fishermen that wolf-whistled at Isabella as we passed.

"Keep smiling, pretend like we are just tourists," Frostbite mumbled, more to herself than me it seemed. We left the foul smelling port behind, and began moving even faster through the city. My mind was blank with worry over what was about to happen, so I didn't really focus on the sites. There were lots of fancy flower decorations around us though, releasing a more pleasing scent than the fish had. The houses were all quaint and homely, and everyone we passed smiled and said Hello. I felt even guiltier about what we were about to do, and I wished that we had attacked a more hostile, unpleasant place so I didn't feel as bad.

And then I saw the Pal Park.

The main building we were about to attack was huge. It only had two levels, but it was the size of a five storey structure. The walls were made entirely out of black glass with shining silver steel holding them together. The roof was a fabulous orange curve, the sun reflecting an amber hue off of it. Huge towering trees were on either side, stretching for several kilometres in order to block out the view. It was as if the future had landed in this relatively small city, and I was simply blown away by it.

"Alright Trevor, it's time for action!" Frostbite hissed, interrupting my pleasant thoughts. She had slipped a pair of sunglasses on and passed me an identical pair. I put them on, dreading what was about to happen. We walked towards the doors, myself feeling like I was being led to a firing squad. Many people were heading in through the circular glass doors, painted gold, silver and crystal like the Pal Park Balls were. The doors slid open as we approached, and I was gobsmacked once again.  
>I couldn't see anything except people. Tall people, short people, old people, young people, fat and thin, blonde, brunette, red, grey, hair of every colour, matched only by a rainbow of different outfits. The noise was deafening, and all my thoughts were instantly drowned out. Frostbite and I were pushed forwards across the sleek blue tiled floor, the crowds all jostling about and desperate to get around. I couldn't even see out the full wall windows out into the park due to the pushing.<p>

"Look over there!" Frostbite shouted in my ear, though it probably sounded like a whisper to anyone else. I peered over my glasses and over heads towards where she was pointing: a solid steel staircase led up towards the metal gallery, giving pristine views over the park. This area was empty, and I guessed the opening would be happening here. And I could see who would be doing it.

Leaf Oak and Janine the gym leader were heading up the stairs, talking animatedly to each other. Leaf had her brown hair back in a ponytail, and was wearing a short sleeved pink top and flowing red skirt instead of her usual, famous blue and red ensemble. Janine had changed out of the purple ninja gear she always wore in the magazines I read and was now wearing a pair of purple jeans and a leather jacket. The two were icons in their own ways in Kanto, and I didn't think killing them, or whatever Frostbite had planned, would do anything useful for the region.  
>"We need to act now, while they are still around!" Frostbite hissed in my ear. We hadn't even been in here two minutes, yet already we had to act. I just gulped nervously and nodded, staring around at all the people crowding the hall. Families, friends, couples, all of these connected people about to have their day, possibly even their lives, ruined.<p>

"So… what are we going to do, exactly?" I asked quietly. Frostbite just smiled and lunged for me. I flinched, but I realised she hadn't gone for me: she was pulling my camera up over my head. She turned the lens around clockwise three times, and then jammed down on several buttons.

"Keep those glasses on!" Frostbite giggled, and threw the camera across the floor. Heads turned as the black device slid past them, but hardly any of them thought differently to it. I was nervous, and wanting to just yell out and get people to run away. It was going to explode, I just knew it….

Than the camera flashed.

The white hot flash lit up the entire hall for about five seconds. If I didn't have the glasses on, I knew I could have easily been blinded by it. It felt like a burning, glowing wave had just washed over me, and my exposed skin felt sore. Than, almost as quickly as it happened, the flash disappeared, and exposed the true nature of what it had done: everyone in the hall had collapsed to the ground. I was shocked at the huge pile up of people, just lying flat on top of each other. Some people were being crushed by others, whilst others looked like they had easily fallen asleep.

"What did you do!" I shouted, pushing an unconscious woman off my shoulder and onto her husband.

"The flash blinded them for a few seconds, and than it caused their brains to shut down as if they had fallen asleep," Frostbite explained simply, kicking an elderly man and a middle aged woman away from her and marching quickly away. I turned and saw she was heading towards the mahogany wooden desk and barrier between the park and the hall. The six metre long structure was were people registered and then moved off into the park. A dozen staff were lying unconscious across their work or on the floor, but Frostbite easily slid between them as she jumped over the desk.

"Hurry up Trevor, the helicopter will be here soon!" She called over to me. I simply nodded, still in shock from what had happened. I hoped these people would all be alright, but I didn't have time to check each of them and see how they were doing. I needed to get my Pokemon back first… than I might stand a shot at doing this.

"Coming!" I called back, and quickly clambered over the desk as well. The staff's uniforms were of similar colours to the Park Balls, and they had many folders that were gold, silver and crystal as well. There were several big trading machines around, and I would have liked to have examined them closer, but Frostbite grabbed my shoulder and gave me a push.

"Get ready for it!" She whispered excitedly in my ears, and pushed me out through black sliding doors.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

The Pal Park was absolutely amazing. We had walked out into a gigantic field of grass, half short and half long, with figures rustling through the long green blades. It stretched on for ever, and I could have easily stepped out into a field. But than the scenery changed: A forest rose up in the left corner of the park, the trees all around a similar height and standing like huge green and brown towers, separating a whole other bunch of Pokemon. A mountain rose up to the far left of this, a mixture of brown and grey rocks, with many boulders and outcrops surrounding a smaller patch of green grass on the very top. And than, directly to my left, was a huge wide lake, though it shone and glistened as if it was the ocean. I couldn't believe it was hidden away behind these trees, and it seemed to be stretching on for a while.

"This place is just…" I couldn't find a word to describe it. It was so quiet and natural, and felt like all the elements had come together to form this perfect land. If I was a Pokemon, I would have live here for all eternity rather than be crammed into a PokeBall. It was just so beautiful… so magical… so peaceful.

"Alright, let's get started!" Frostbite's overly happy tones cut through the silence as she rushed forwards, pulling a small gun out of her pocket. I was angry at her for disrupting the peace, and I watched as a small herd of Sentret and Furret scuttled away through the grass. I stared at the gun, wondering if she was about to shot something instead of catch it, but instead Frostbite pointed it into the sky and pulled the trigger. A flare shot up in the sky, managing to shine a brilliant red even in the bright, sunny day.

"The helicopters will be here in two minutes," Frostbite began explaining, putting the gun back in her pocket, "so we are going to have to move quickly if we want to get all these Pokemon!" And with that, Frostbite pulled a bag full of the PCM Balls. There were about fifty inside the bag, and she thrust them into my and tore it open.

"Are we going to send our Pokemon out?" I asked, trying to say something to distract my mind from what we were about to do. Frostbite paused, her hand still grasped around several of the PCM Balls. I knew that she was thinking about wheter to give them to me or not, but I absolutely needed them: I didn't know how long that flash lasted for, but I didn't want to be unarmed when anyone got here.

"I suppose you have been a good little agent…." Frostbite said at last, smirking slightly. She reached into her bag and pulled out my seven PokeBalls, thrusting them into my hand. I felt happiness surge through me as I took my Pokemon back. All seven of them were important and special in their own way (I had new found respect for Magikarp after Selphy's mansion), and I was pleased to have them away from Frostbite's grasps. I didn't know what she was going to happen next, but having my Pokemon give me a sense of power and pride, and I knew I could withstand it.

"Alright, now that you have your Pokemon, it's time we get started!" Frostbite called, grabbing a handful of PCM Balls. In the distance, the whir of a helicopter filled the air, and I knew that soon they would soon be here. Just as I thought if there was a chance I could stop this, saving the Pokemon and the people inside, there was a smashing sound behind us. I turned around, and was shocked to see a Pokemon hurtling towards us!

"LOOK OUT!" I cried, and jumped forwards, pushing Frostbite to the ground. The Pokemon soared over us and crashed into the ground, covering us with grass and dirt as it skidded several metres through the grassland.

"What was that?" Frostbite shrieked, pushing me aside and leaping up.

"I don't know!" I shouted back, and leapt to my feet. The Pokemon was getting to its feet, which were blue and about as thick as tree trunks. The legs were sticking out of a shell, cream in the front and harder and brown on the back, with stubby arms sticking out at top. A large, rough sphere shaped head finished this off, glaring down at us two between the two cannons sticking out of the shell.

"AAAAAAH!" Frostbite screamed, and I could understand her shock. After being chased by a murderous, explosive shooting Blastoise only a few days ago, seeing the real thing nearly crush us again was a huge shock. "WHAT'S IT DOING HERE?" Frostbite wailed again, grasping my arm as the Pokemon thumped towards us. "WHERE DID IT COME FROM?" As she wailed in my ear, a thought suddenly came to me: didn't a certain famous trainer own a Blastoise…

"Alright Blastoise, Ice Beam!" A female voice called across the field. I turned around and had my suspicions confirmed: Leaf was sprinting across the field barefoot; having kicked her high heels off, and was pulling a PokeBall out of a sparkly handbag. Frostbite's jaw had dropped, and she looked like she'd just been punched.

"B-b-b-but… how….the camera… this shouldn't… why…." She whimpered, her lips trembling. She seemed to have frozen, and I knew that the failure of her mission already was taking a toll on her. But I couldn't just stand here while she broke down, and I pulled her quickly out of the way. Blastoise's Ice Beam struck the ground, causing a patch of ice to freeze where we had just been standing.

"Stay where you are!" Leaf came to a halt a few metres away, red in the face and puffing. She had four PokeBalls in her hand, and before I could even more, she threw them to the ground. I watched in shock as four beams of energy surrounded us on the left, right, front and above. A Pidgeot began to soar around our heads, while a Ninetales, Exeggutor and Donphan joined Blastoise in barricading us in.

"I wouldn't recommend battling me," Leaf said with a triumphant smirk as the PokeBalls hovered back to her, "I've trained with the best trainer in Kanto, after all." The five Pokemon all seemed rather menacing, and I knew I didn't want to have to deal with any of them.

"Look, I don't want any trouble -" I began, but Leaf put a hand up to stop me talking.

"I don't want to hear any of it," She snapped. "Janine is inside calling the police. It seems that special camera of yours wasn't strong enough to reach the top floor," Leaf added, and her Pokemon smirked. I was annoyed and worried, but a sudden weight fell onto my back: I turned and found Frostbite had nearly collapsed, her knees weakened by the shock of the situation.

"B-b-but it w-w-was per-er-erfect… so p-p-perfect…." She whispered, her body shaking slightly. Leaf looked rather confused, but I didn't want Frostbite to suffer. Besides, it could play in my favour…

"She's sick!" I cried, helping her to her feet. "Please, can you let me take her somewhere?" I needed to leave the Pal Park before the police got here. If I got out, I could always dump Frostbite with Leaf and run back to the boat. If Robert was truly being blackmailed, he would surely help me.

But before Leaf could even say something, the whirr and whine of the helicopters suddenly filled the area. I looked up with shock as the two black machines soared above us, beginning to circle and find a place to land.

Suddenly, I found myself flying forwards, being pushed towards the ground. As I rolled through the grass, coming to a stop next to the thick legs of Leaf's Donphan, I saw Frostbite pull three PokeBalls out of her bag.

"You can't stop us!" She shrieked as she threw them on the ground. "We will catch everyone single Pokemon and than we will kill you, you silly little girl!" The PokeBalls burst open before Leaf could react: Mismagius and Weavile quickly formed, and another Pokemon rose up as well. A hard purple shell formed on the field, with many jagged bits and spikes sticking out. It opened up, revealing a circular black face hidden deep within the body.

"Clooooy," The Cloyster said mysteriously, and joined Weavile and Mismagius in protecting Frostbite. As I stared at the Cloyster, an image of a Shellder suddenly flashed before my eyes. I wasn't sure why this came to me, but I would think about it later… when I wasn't in quite such a serious state.

"ATTACK!" Frostbite screamed, and she then sprinted away past Blastoise. Suddenly her Pokemon attacked, and I was stunned at how fast and brutal they acted. Mismagius instantly unleashed the dark purple Shadow Ball upon Exeggutor, knocking the tree-shaped Pokemon off his feet. Cloyster suddenly glowed a deep blue, the same colour as the lake behind me, and unleashed a shock wave of water that caused Ninetales to roll back to Leaf. As I tried to work out what attack it was, Donphan suddenly cried out besides me. I turned and gasped, watching as Weavile unleashed a powerful Blizzard from between her claws. I leapt out of the way, causing Donphan to get the full force of the snowstorm.

"Bloody hell!" I cried as I crashed into a rock. Ninetales soaking body was lying only a few feet away, and I looked up to see that Donphan was now a block of ice, resting on the grass. I didn't know Frostbite's Pokemon could be this powerful, but I had the evidence right in front of me. I turned away to look at Leaf: she looked just as shocked as I was, but she quickly shook her head, recovering herself.

"Deal with them Pidgeot!" She shouted. "Blastoise, tend to the woman!"

"Pidgeeeeee!" Pidgeot shrieked and suddenly dived down, her body glowing a shade of purple for a moment before bursting into violet flames. She soared down and smashed directly into Mismagius, suddenly the ghost Pokemon spiralling away due to the Brave Bird's force. Blastoise had turned and was running towards Frostbite, the ground shaking as he stomped along.  
>I stared towards the two helicopters continuing to soar overhead. Wind was beginning to be generated by them, and I felt dust and loose blades of grass battering against me. The doors to the helicopters were open, and I could see black-clad figures hanging in the doorways. It seemed that several of them were going to jump down while the helicopters landed, and I could see a black box there as well. I didn't want to think what was in it, but I couldn't help but think about how bad it would be.<br>_  
>What am I suppose to do? <em>I felt torn as I lay against a rock, watching the scenes in front of me. The battle was raging on between Pidgeot and Weavile and Cloyster, the Flying Pokemon doing her best to avoid multiple Ice attacks. Blastoise was running after Frostbite still, who was now standing in a clearing while she threw PCM Balls around, waiting for her helpers to come down. And Leaf simply stood there a few feet away, clearly unsure what to do.  
>This was my chance to do the right thing.<p>

I struggled to my feet, not sure what I was going to do, but I knew I had to do something. This was my only chance to stop things once and for all. I needed to stop Frostbite, Mr Williamson, this entire corrupted organisation before anymore lives were lost. Innocent people had been affected in the Pal Park Hall, and now innocent Pokemon would be taken away from their rightful owners. If I didn't try and stop things, they could become bigger and stronger, plan more dangerous and deadly heists. I needed to end this: now!

"Vaporeon, Pidgeotto, Gligar, out you come!" I shouted, and threw the PokeBalls quickly onto the field. Within seconds, the three Pokemon I called were standing before me, staring around at the battle before me. I turned to see Leaf looking shocked, obviously thinking I was about to attack her. "Vaporeon, you and I will go with Blastoise. Pidgeotto, you use Heat Wave on Weavile, and Gligar use Metal Claw on Cloyster!"

"Gli!"

"Pidgeotto Otto!" The two Pokemon quickly flew over, Gligar smashing down on Cloyster's tough shell with a glowing silver claw, stopping an Ice Beam from being initiated.

"Ready Vaporeon?" I asked. Vaporeon nodded up at me, staring determinedly towards Frostbite: she had a knife out and was pointing it at Blastoise, threatening him to come closer. I smiled back and turned as well: I had to stop Frostbite right now, and I couldn't let anything hold me back.

"Alright than, let's do this!" I cried, and began to run. Suddenly, a hand grasped my shoulder. I spun around, wanting to see who it was, and was surprised to find Leaf standing there, smiling warmly.

"Thank you for helping!" She said. "I don't do this sort of thing on my own very often, so I'm not sure what to do," Leaf added timidly, and I nodded. It must be hard for her, living up to her boyfriend, grandfather and cousin's reputations. I went to give her my thanks, but a thought suddenly came to me.

"I know something you can do!" I said excitedly, and pointed up towards the helicopters, which were still getting low enough for the supplies and agents to jump off safely. "We need to destroy those two, and quickly! But I want the woman to see it, let her know which side I'm on!" Leaf looked at the helicopters and smiled.

"I know exactly what to do," She smirked, and dramatically pulled something out of her pocket. I felt my jaw drop as I stared at the object in awe: a Master Ball… a true, real life Master Ball…

"LEAF!" A voice called out from across the field. We both turned in surprise, watching as Janine ran across the field towards us. A Nidoqueen was thundering alongside her, staring towards the battle scene with a look of one desperate for a fight. I glanced over and was glad to see things were going our way: Pidgeotto and Pidgeot were checking on the other Pokemon whilst Gligar continued to thump Cloyster's shell with Metal Claw, Weavile laying smoking alongside.

"Leaf, I called the police, they'll be on their way soon," Janine explained as she came to a halt. She sounded more feminine than I expected, especially with the grouchy Nidoqueen alongside. "Shall we deal with the issue while we wait?"

"We were just about to!" Leaf called, showing Janine the Master Ball. "Let's go then… what's your name?" She asked, turning curiously towards me.

"Trevor, Trevor Archer," I replied, and Vaporeon nodded as if agreeing.

"Alright Trevor, let's go!" Leaf shouted, and we sprinted forwards, Vaporeon running between us. Janine gave an order to Nidoqueen, and I turned to see her launching into a powerful Brick Break against Cloyster. I turned back around and could see we were getting closer already to Frostbite, who was so focused on the helicopters that she couldn't see us coming towards her. Blastoise, however, turned around, smiling at his trainer as she approached.

"Vaporeon, Aurora Beam!" I ordered.

"Vapoooooor!" Vaporeon cried, and fired the rainbow ice beam at the knife. Frostbite turned around, still wearing the maniacal smile she'd been using for the best few minutes, as the blade of the knife nearly broke her fingers. But than it quickly turned to shock as Leaf, Vaporeon and I came to a halt, staring defiantly at her. There was a thunder of footsteps, and we looked around as Janine joined us, Exeggutor, Ninetales and Donphan following behind. Pidgeotto, Pidgeot, Gligar and Nidoqueen were still battling Cloyster, who was putting up a tough fight.

"You… what…. Leaf… TRAITOR!" Frostbite struggled to find her words, but once she got the right one out, she lunged for me. I actually covered my face, expecting her long claw-like nails to get at me. But all I could hear was screeching and opened my eyes: Blastoise was holding Frostbite backwards, his thick arm pushing her backwards.

"YOU BETRAYED US!" Frostbite roared, her arms flailing. "FILTHY SCUM!"

"SHUT UP!" I roared back, though Frostbite continued to fight back against Blastoise. "I don't give a shit about you and your plans anymore! Stopping you is the right thing for me to do, and I'm so going to enjoy seeing you get your comeuppances!" Vaporeon smiled up at me, and I gave him a pat on his scaly head as I stared furiously towards Frostbite. I could feel my hatred boiling up inside of me, but as I looked, Frostbite wasn't furious. Her lips had twisted into a thin yet psychotic smile, and her eyes were fill of malice.

"Oh you silly, immature little man!" Frostbite giggled softly, and she pointed upwards. "You think you've stopped us, but you're far from winning!" I turned and looked at the sky. The helicopters were getting much lower now, the roar filling the air around us, the wind sending sand, dirt and loose leaves and twigs into the sky. I could see the two people standing in the doorway of the helicopter soaring above our heads, their hands busy opening up the metal boxes whilst they looked down at us.

"Within minutes, the helicopters would have landed and you'll all be dead!" Frostbite sneered in a triumphant manner. However, another laugh filled the air around us. I smiled myself as Leaf stepped forwards, her Ninetales following her for protection.

"Actually, within minutes, all your agents will be dead and you'll be carted away in a police van… if you're lucky, that is," Leaf said sweetly, and she dropped the Master Ball on the ground.

A wave of energy I hadn't felt before seemed to be released from the Master Ball. Leaf stepped backwards and I followed suit, watching as blinding light and purple energy emerged from the ball. A low rumble sounded overhead, and I looked up and gasped: the beautiful, picture perfect sky was suddenly replaced by thick black clouds that had appeared out of nowhere. The light grew even brighter in the dark, and the energy formed into a shape. My heart was racing with excitement as I begin to see things take shape: a long purple mane of hair, golden yellow fur, sharp claws at the end of each paw. I could see Frostbite looked terrified, watching in shock as the legendary Pokemon Raikou formed before us.

"Raaaaiii…" The beast growled, its fur seeming to glow as the light disappeared. It turned and surveryed us all with a curious look, before staring at Leaf, awaiting instruction. She simply pointed up at the helicopters, which were beginning to ascend back into the stormy sky.

"Destroy them," Leaf said simply, and took a step backwards. I stood in front of Vaporeon as we took a step backwards, my eyes wide with interest at what would happen next. Raikou nodded, and he burst into dazzling amber light. The clouds overhead rumbled more, and a flash lit up the scene.

"RAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIII-KOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUU!" The beast roared, nearly knocking us over, but the attack did just that: a sudden blast of electricity the width of a building was released from Raikou's body, whose eyes were now glowing as bright as the sun. I was blasted backwards over Vaporeon, and saw Frostbite smashing into a tree, staring upwards with shock. I looked back at the sky, knowing the helicopters were doomed. One helicopter was above the forest, the other heading towards the lake. The Electric attack, however, avoided both of them, instead striking the sky. For a moment, I thought Raikou had missed, it had stuffed it all up!

Than, with a blinding flash and a deafening boom, that thought changed.

I let out a shout as I was blinded by two flashes of lightning, quickly shielding my eyes as the two bolts struck the weak helicopters. Instantly the two machines exploded, their noise adding to the deafening boom from the lightning bolts. Both helicopters were completely destroyed, the orange and grey fireballs remaining in midair, bits of metal flying across the sky towards us. It was terrifying, yet I couldn't help but be glad that the plan was beginning to fail.

I blinked, and realised that everything was over, almost as quickly as it had begun. There was quite an eerie silence, and I slowly got up, looking around at what had happened. Leaf, Janine and the other Pokemon had fallen over as well. I could see Pidgeotto, Gligar, Pidgeot and Nidoqueen coming towards us now, Cloyster lying alongside Weavile. Leaf and Janine were getting to their feet now as well, and I was glad to see everyone was alright.

My attention turned towards Frostbite. She was leaning against a tree, her eyes still wide with horror and staring towards Raikou. The Thunder Pokemon was wandering around on the spot, sparks still flying from his coat, glancing between Frostbite, Leaf and the wreckage scattered around us. Charred metal of varying sizes had been embedded in the ground, along with a few arms and legs, all which remained of the agents that would have been killed in the blast. It was horrible to see what had happened, but I had to suppress this guilty feeling as I stared at a flaming arm: it had been the right thing to do.

"What now?" I turned around as Janine spoke, her arms wrapped around her Nidoqueen's body. My three Pokemon that were out gathered around me, and I pulled them into a hug as well.

"I can hear sirens," Leaf said quietly, and the whine of police cars was definitely filling the air. She had all her Pokemon around her as well, except for Raikou, who continued to stalk the spot. We stared towards Frostbite, wondering how she would react. But my boss still had wide, open eyes with a blank expression on her face, clutching her chest where her heart was.

"The mission… all this planning… so much money… it's over…" She whispered, staring towards the lake where one of the helicopters had exploded around. "Cameron must be gone… all our plans have been ruined…," she continued to mumble, and I was beginning to feel guilty. I looked around and saw Leaf was wearing a rather sad expression on her face. I looked down at my three Pokemon, who all looked up at me in return.

"Good job," I whispered, and their faces lit up at the praise. There was movement, and I looked up as Frostbite walked forwards, wobbling slightly.

"I may not be able to catch any Pokemon," She whispered, reaching into her bag. I didn't like the look of this: I knew what was inside there, and didn't trust what she would pull out. "but despite catching nothing, I can still at least kill you all…" and she pointed towards the lake: one of the boxes the men had been with in the doorway had landed there, causing a number of machine guns to spread out across the floor. Frostbite laughed coldly, standing up firmly and whipping something out of her bag: it was the metal rod us Pokemon Catchers used to record the data of our caught Pokemon.

"Don't worry, this isn't a deadly weapon," Frostbite explained with a smirk, "but it'll be enough to knock you off your feet and leave you unable to fight back!" She turned the handle at the bottom, and I watched in horror as a ball of orange energy suddenly formed in the spot where the data was displayed by holographic.

"JUMP!" I screamed, and pulled my Pokemon out of the way. Frostbite laughed and pressed a button, firing the ball towards us all. I heard Leaf, Janine and their Pokemon scream as they also jumped out of the way, and than heard the energy explode. A wave of power caused me and my team to continue rolling along, and we came to a crashing stop in the long grass.

"Gli Gli!" Gligar cried as he soared into the air a second later. His claws were both glowing silver, and he suddenly shot off before I could even react. My attention was fixed on something painful on my back: I looked back as saw a piece of jagged metal had cut my shirt and skin, and I could feel that I was bleeding.

"Crap," I hissed, and turned back towards the others. Frostbite had sprinted off by the trees, continuing to fire the energy rapidly. I watched in horror as Raikou charged forwards, his roar once again filling the air around us, only to be sent flying by a direct hit to the stomach. The legendary Pokemon caused Blastoise and Exeggutor to fall over once again. Another blast of energy nearly struck Janine, but Nidoqueen leapt in and took the hit, causing her to roll back towards Cloyster.

"We need to stop her now!" I said to Vaporeon and Pidgeotto. Gligar was doing his best to get towards her, but I knew I would have to rely on my two main Pokemon: they had been here for the past few years while I had been working for the Pokemon Catchers, and I wanted them with me until the end.

"Pidgeotto, you get down there and use Air Slash on her!" I commanded. "Vaporeon, I want you to use Surf on her if she makes it to the lake! I'm going to find something to use as a weapon," and the two Pokemon smiled and nodded, and headed determinedly off. I watched as Ninetales leapt into the air to avoid being struck, and I hoped that they would be able to survive.  
><em><br>Focus: you need something to stop her! _I thought, and began to peer around the grass. I picked up the jagged metal I had landed on, which had some of my blood along the edges, and saw it had one half of a broken hinge on it.

"The box!" I gasped. The other helicopter would have exploded near here, which meant that if the other box of weapons had survived, this one should have as well! I quickly ran through the grass, spooking several Meowth that had been watching curiously nearby. I leapt over a severely scorched agent lying face down and found what I was looking for: a twisted and charred metal box, its contents strewn across the ground. There were about three dozen machine guns in some variety, along with more knives, several swords and a few grenades that I was glad hadn't exploded.

"Alright…. Here goes nothing…" I mumbled, and I grabbed the closest machine gun to me. It felt strange to be holding it, knowing I was going to use it to threaten someone in a few moments. There was a guilty sensation in my stomach, but I was quite sure where it had come from. Shouts from people and Pokemon sounded behind me, clashing with the whine of police cars as they got closer to the park. It was time for me to go… it was time to save the day…

Without another thought, I turned around and began sprinting. I don't think I had run so quickly or with so much determination in my life. My legs were pounding the grass, moving quickly as I leapt over human remains and broken bits of the helicopters. I saw glimpses of purple, white and brown amongst the grass, and I knew that Pokemon were watching my progress. But my focus was entirely on getting towards the lake. The sound of the energy being fired was getting louder and more frequent, being matched with roars, shouts and the cries of Pidgeotto and Pidgeot. The sound of crashing water had sounded yet, so I knew that Vaporeon had resorted to Surf yet. I nearly tripped over Exeggutor's head leaves as he lay on the ground, but avoided him and rushed closer to the lake, the gun swinging in my arms, knowing I had nearly reached the point.

I looked up as I got nearer, and was shocked to see why Vaporeon hadn't used Surf yet. My precious water type was lying a few metres away from me, draped over the unconscious body of Ninetales. I looked to the right and saw Gligar had also fainted, nearly embedded in the ground. I slowly came to a stop, regret and shock settling in. My Pokemon had been struck down. I had let them and let them faint. It was truly an awful sight to see.

"PIDGEEEEE!"

A shrill cry filled the air, and I was nearly blown off my feet as a brown blur swirled past me. I followed it with my eyes and was shocked by another sight: Frostbite, Leaf and Janine were standing at the edge of the lake, Pidgeot half submerged in the water and half on still on the sandy ground. Frostbite was surrounded with guns, but they lay ignored as she held the rod madly in her hands.

"SHOW YOURSELF YOU STUPID BIRD!" She shrieked. I felt my shock and despair leave me quickly: Pidgeotto was still fighting back! I could see Leaf and Janine were watching the brown blur as well, looks of shock upon their faces. Frostbite screeched like a banshee and fired the energy randomly. Pidgeotto dodged three balls, and my boss screamed once again. This was the moment I had been waiting for: the moment where I could stop these plans.

"AIR SLASH NOW!" I roared, and Frostbite's head snapped around at the sound of my voice. She glared at me with wide, maniacal eyes, raising the rod up above her head, ready to cast it down on me.

"OOOOOOOOOO!" Pidgeotto suddenly rematerialised as she came to a halt, a ball of wind suddenly soaring through the air. Before Frostbite could do anything to me, the Air Slash struck her hand: she screamed as pain as her hand was practically shattered by the force, the rod flying away and landing in the water. I beamed brightly and lowered the gun to my side. Pidgeotto swooped down quickly and hovered in front of me, smiling widely.

"That was fucking brilliant!" I cried, and Pidgeotto smiled widely as I pulled her into a hug. "You just-" but before I could finish my sentence, a blinding white light struck my eyes. I let go as Pidgeotto began to glow brightly, a soft call coming from her. Her wings and body began to grow rapidly, her claws getting longer and sharper. Her head plumage grow to radical lengths behind her, and my jaw dropped as she nearly tripled in size.

"PIDGEOOOOOT!" My newly evolved Pokemon cried as the light disappeared. I could barely contain a cry of glee as Pidgeot flexed her new long, magnificent wings, a much wiser and brighter smile upon her face.

"CONGRATULATIONS!" I wailed, and gave her another hug, which Pidgeot matched and wrapped her wings around me. Leaf and Janine rushed over, both of them smiling as well and ready to give their congratulations. But our celebrations had barely begun before a clapping ringed out around us.

"Bravo Trevor, bravo!" Pidgeot flew back into the air, revealing Frostbite as she clapped slowly and loudly. A machine gun was draped over her shoulder, having been picked up from the ground. I noticed Leaf and Janine taking a nervous step backwards, leaving me as the closest person to Frostbite.

The only person to stop her.

"Congratulations, I truly mean it," Frostbite said, though her voice was clearly sarcastic. "It's always brilliant when someone gets an even bigger, uglier bird, so well done!" I put an arm out to stop Pidgeot flying forwards, her wings flapping angrily and nearly cuffing me. "It's a pity I'm going to kill you now, so you won't be able to enjoy it!"

"I'd like to see you try!" I snapped back, and I raised the machine gun up. Frostbite let out a squawk of laughter as she raised her own.

"Really Archer?" She smirked. "I've known you for many years now, and I know you wouldn't even hurt a murderous Rattata! What makes you think you can stop me? Don't you remember all those things you said yesterday in your cage?" I cursed in my mind at this, and Frostbite smiled widely at the grumpy expression on my face. "I thought so! You wouldn't kill Selphy, you wouldn't stand up to me or Cameron when we gave you this assignment, you wouldn't even stand up to poor Mrs Lewis!"

"I will stop you!" I snapped back, though my voice sounded a bit crackly as I said it, making her laugh again. Everything was rushing through my mind now. For the first time since this had begun, I truly appreciated how serious this situation was. They must have been planning this for weeks, months, possibly even years! They didn't care about the Pokemon anymore: they just cared about the money they got and being famous for what they did. And look at who had suffered from it: Mrs Lewis had lost her life, Selphy lost her home and her entire staff, Robert was being blackmailed, the people in the hall had had their special day ruined, even the agents had suffered due to all of this! I looked around at Gligar, than turned to look at Vaporeon. They had suffered due to this, possibly permanently, just like Charizard, Electrode and Heracross had many years ago…

"_Just remember this boy: if you find yourself in a life or death situation, what would you rather rely on. You're Pokemon, or a weapon?"_

The words of the killer echoed inside my brain, and I could feel my heart racing, my blood pumping through my body, courage and determination swelling inside of me. I could feel Pidgeot's rage, feel Leaf and Janine's fear… it was time to end this.

"Now really Trevor, what makes you think you can stop me?" Frostbite sneered, her finger tightening on the trigger. I looked up at her with pure rage, staring into her cruel, taunting face, my own fingers tightening.

"Face the facts Isabella: everyone has to die at some point!" I said simply. For a brief second, Frostbite's taunting face turned to shock, shocked by what I said, shocked by how I was glaring at her.

Than we both pulled the trigger.

Leaf screamed in my ear as the boom of gunfire sounded from around my waist, and I flinched slightly at the bright lights. I felt something faze right past me, and I knew it was a bullet. But it didn't touch me, the energy from it enough to know it had passed. I looked up at Frostbite, wondering how she would react. The once elegant woman had her jaw dropped, her eyes bulging, looking like man whose sports team had just lost. Her power, her superiority, her plans had just been shattered.

And so had her life.

I watched with sick pleasure as Frostbite dropped her gun, causing it to clatter along with the others. Blood was pouring out of three bullet wounds, all centred around her heart and lungs. Crimson blood poured out of her mouth, over her pearly teeth and luscious red lips. She stared at me with her shocked eyes, and I had to suppress the guilty feeling rising up inside of me. And then, without any sound, Isabella Frost tilted over backwards, like a proud building finally collapsing. I watched with a tiny bit of sorrow as my boss, my once proud hero, fell into the water with a soft splash, disappearing amongst the crystal surface. A cloud of red formed around her as her lifeless body sunk down to the bottom, joining the remains of her helicopter and agents, eternally gone.

Once again, silence fell around us. I simply stared at the water, unable to take in what had just happened. I let the gun fall to the floor, not caring about it anymore. I felt a reassuring touch on my back, and I turned to see Pidgeot had landed, and now had a wing wrapped around me. I smiled at her, but I felt sick inside… I had just taken a life….

"NOOOOOO!"

The silence was shattered suddenly by a cry from above. I looked up fearfully, recognising the tones used. A figure was staring down at us from the rocky field high above us. Even from this distance, I could tell he was badly injured: bloody face, torn outfit, blood down his arms. However, even these injuries couldn't disguise the furious face that was now making my heart sink.

Mr Williamson had survived.

Now I was definitely dead.


	6. Pallet Town

**It has been a while since the last part, but after this very dramatic conclusion, only a week's wait for the epilogue! (which is much shorter ;))**

**Pallet Town**

In an instant, fear was once again coursing throughout my body, and I instinctively grabbed and raised the machine gun up at the figure. However, despite what I thought, Mr Williamson was unarmed. The mysterious man simply stared at the water where Frostbite had since sunk to the bottom. I had had a feeling in the back of my mind if something was going on between the two, and now my suspicions were being confirmed. I had never seen Mr Williamson look anything other than angry, smug or stressed during this brief time I've known him, but it made him look like a much weaker man, quite the opposite from the fearsome, manipulative figure he had first sat next to.

"Izzy!" He cried from on top of the mountain, and I slowly lowered my gun again. I don't have the heart to shoot him in this state, even though I know perfectly well that he would do it to me. I felt Vaporeon, Pidgeot and Gligar move in closer to me, and turned to look at Leaf and Janine. They seemed just as confused as I did, not sure what to do with him. Sirens continued to wail in the background, sounding a lot closer now, and they all knew that the police would soon be here and it would all be in their hands.

"Should we leave him or restrain him or… I don't know," I said, letting the gun fall to the ground again. I was desperate for a rest, even though I had spent so long knocked out in that cage and then the boat.

"I think restraining him would be for the best," Leaf said, and I knew she was right after all the stuff she had been involved in. She put a hand on my shoulder and gave me a kind, warming smile. "I know this stuff is pretty stressful and it really does your head in some times, but you've done the right thing: this company is over now, and you can move on now." I nodded, though I wasn't sure if her words were true or not. No matter what happened next, this was going to stay with me for the rest of my life… there would be no escaping this nightmare.

"You people are disgusting." I turned around at the sound of the voice, and found Mr Williamson was not quite as injured as I thought: he was definitely bleeding from multiple wounds and he wobbled as he stood, but he was definitely standing and definitely staring down at us. "You won't get away with this?"

"Excuse me?" Janine said, stepping forwards and glaring up at him. "The police are coming here looking for you, not us! Your girlfriend may have died, but she would have killed us all and possibly many innocent people! You all deserve to rot in jail for a very very long time!"

"MONSTERS!" Mr Williamson shouting, the gym leader's words meaning nothing, and suddenly raised something. Raikou and Blastoise growled next to Leaf, and I knew that they would strike if he tried anything, and I bent down towards the gun once more. However, I froze when I noticed that what he was holding clearly wasn't a gun: it was one the rods in catching Pokemon, and Isabella's had been able to produce energy. The rod had many different functions though, and I knew that Mr Williamson wasn't using his to attack.

"The Pokemon Catchers are not over yet!" He shouted as he pressed a button, causing the rod to emit a whine that they could hear down here. "I will carry out our master plan, wheter you try and stop me or not! By the end of today, I will have destroyed the center of this region's Pokemon Research, and you will see what I am capable of!" Mr Williamson was suddenly covered in white light, making Leaf gasp, and with a blink of an eye he was gone. I knew that there were teleportation boxes all around the regions in case someone needed to be pulled out of a dangerous situation, though there was no way of telling where he went.

"We'll have to send people out to try and find him!" I yelled, turning to face Leaf, only to find a grim look on her face.

"You heard what he said: destroying the region's Pokemon Research center," she said, her voice shaking. I was not knowledgeable about these things, though I knew there were many labs around Kanto and Sevii where he might have gone.

"Let's just send people there then!" I cried, not realising I was shouting. However, Leaf simply shook her head, and Janine walked forwards and put her hands on her shoulders, looking just as grim as she did.

"He is going to Professor Oak's laboratory," the gym leader said. "If he can teleport and he is already there, than it may be too late to stop him." I felt my jaw drop, felt the hope disappear out of my body: we couldn't lose now… not after what had happened… not after what I had did. I looked at Vaporeon, Pidgeot and Gligar, who all looked as shocked as I did. I felt the PokeBalls of Magikarp, Charizard, Electrode and Heracross: they deserved me to do something right for once.

"We can't let him win," I said loudly over the whine of the sirens. "We have to get to his lab straight away. If we move quickly, we might just have a chance at saving the day." Leaf looked up, her face still grim, and I hoped she agreed with me. My heart was pounding against my chest, but it than skipped a beat as Leaf nodded, approving the mission. I smiled widely as I picked up the gun.

It was time to save the day.

* * *

><p>Within no time, I was back onboard the boat.<p>

Police officers have arrived along with fire engines and ambulances, and though the blaze of the destroyed helicopters was put out, there were no other survivors. The police wanted to interview us, but Leaf told them they would later, and one of the people responsible was at the bottom of the lake. We then grabbed the array of weaponry that had spilled from the black boxes, and Janine gathered some ninja-like weapons ranging from knives and spears to mysterious bundles of power. I felt like part of a superhero group as we marched through the Pal Park and Fuchsia City with our Pokemon surrounding us and weapons in our hands, people parting as we walked. This was the feeling I use to have about being a Pokemon Catcher: pride that I was doing the right thing, happy in the knowledge that my actions would make people feel better. Frostbite and Mr Williamson had ruined that feeling, but I could feel it coming back as we headed for the boat, knowing that their reign of terror would soon be over.

The Pokemon Catchers boat was still there when we arrived, and I could Robert leaning against the wall, a cigarette clasped in his mouth. I had always wondered what he did during his time when we were catching, and it was interesting to see him looking rather calm even though a dire situation was occurring behind him.

"ROBERT!" I yelled. The captain turned around, for a second looking curious, but than his mouth dropped and the cigarette fell out. The sight of me armed and with Leaf and Janine must be rather surprising, and I was surprised the captain didn't run to the controls and sail away.

"Where's Isabella and Cameron?" He asked.

"The woman's dead, the guy is trying to destroy the world," Janine explained, raising one of the guns up and smiling. "Unless you want to join that Isabella woman, I suggest you get back to the steering wheel."

"Janine, he is going to help us, we shouldn't threaten him," Leaf said.

"I am not going to help you!" Robert growled, much to my surprise.

"Janine, threaten him," Leaf said. Janine smiled as she raised the gun threateningly, but I quickly moved forwards, holding my arms up.

"Give me a moment," I hissed. Janine looked reluctant, but Leaf nodded and the gym leader lowered her gun. I smiled and turned around to face Robert, who was staring at us all uneasily. "Robert, we don't want to hurt you. We just need you to take us to Pallet Town, otherwise Mr Williamson is going to destroy our entire region, and I know you're a good soul." Robert simply nodded, and I wasn't sure if he was agreeing with me or not. "Whatever they have on you we will ignore and will cast aside: you can start a new life if you have to once this is over!" I added, hoping that would work. Robert froze, and I stared uneasily at Vaporeon for help. He simply shrugged and I turned back to Robert to find his lips quivering.

"They have my family!" The captain shouted, and Leaf gasped behind me. I never knew the captain had any relatives, and I had never seen him break down like this before, tears beginning to stream down his tanned, aging face. "Frostbite told me that if I didn't take them to wherever she wanted, no questions asked, they would go after my wife and daughter. She said someone would follow them and kill them if she gave the word." I wasn't sure what to do, but I decided to run up the gangplank and put my hands on his shoulders, making Robert stare up at me.

"I promise we won't let that happen," I said, trying to sound strong and tough like all the heroes in the movies did. "Take us to Pallet Town and I will send Pidgeot to the police and they will go and protect your family, alright?" Robert looked uncertain, but Leaf suddenly pulled something that looked like a napkin from a small handbag she had brought to the ceremony, and scribbled something using a pen Janine had.

"There we go!" She said after a few moments, and held up a note that I knew would be an order for the police. "I used Red's signature so they'll definitely have to do it!" She added, and Robert managed a smile. Pidgeot flew into the air and Leaf tied the note to one of her talons.

"Find us after you deliver the note," I called.

"Pidgey Pidge!" She cried and took off into the air.

"That is, of course, if we're on the water," I said, and turned to Robert. The captain wiped the tears away and put an uneasy smile on his face.

"I can't say no to that deal now, can I?" He said, making Leaf and Janine sigh with relief. "Now, we better hit the seas if we're too beat Cameron!"

* * *

><p>Within ten minutes we were racing through the water, all of us onboard though our Pokemon were back inside their respective PokeBalls. Leaf had decided it was too risky to use the phones in case there were tapped, and instead sent her own Pidgeot to the Indigo Plateau to alert Red. Janine calculated the weaponry they had, and revealed that they had enough bullets on them to shot everyone in Pallet Town two hundred times each. All I could say at the time was 'Wow', and couldn't help but dwell on what Frostbite and Mr Williamson had been planning to do with all these weapons: were they planning on attack Oak at some point and Cameron was bringing it ahead, or were they going to build up with more murders and robberies before taking on the big guy?<p>

"I'll wait for Pidgeot," I said suddenly and moved out onto the deck, my heart racing and head pounding. What had I gotten involved in? Only a few weeks ago I had been a Junior Catcher on my way to doing big things in the company, hoping to get some interesting and exciting cases. I never wanted to get involved in robbery, murder and terrorism. I stared down at my hands, thinking about how I had pulled that trigger only a short time ago: had I let Frostbite and Williamson change me for the worst? Was I no better than that man who attacked me in the cave? I thought about Charizard, Electrode and Heracross. I thought about Selphy and wondered if she had managed to escape. I thought about Mrs Lewis and her grieving family. I thought about those boys I was tricked into stealing from. I thought about everyone I knocked out at the Pal Park. I thought about my own family, wondering what they would say…

My family.

"SHIT!" I cursed, and slid down onto the deck, hitting myself in the head. Leaf asked what was wrong but I ignored her, thinking about the people I have so terribly and stupidly ignored. I was so caught up in trying to save Pallet Town that I had completely forgotten my family still lived there, the fact that _I _had lived there! I wanted this incident over more than ever, simply so I could move on by moving backwards and go back to how things should be.

"Pidgeeee!" I looked up at the sound of Pidgeot, and felt slightly relieved as she soared down and landed smoothly on the deck, the handkerchief still in her talons. Leaf rushed forwards to grab it and her face lit up.

"The police are going to Boon Island straight away," she said, and I smiled as well. "Are you alright?" Leaf added, her smile fading slightly.

"I'm fine, truly," I replied, forcing a smile and covering up the dark thoughts and questions mulling around inside me. Leaf didn't look entirely convinced and I simply kept smiling, trying to cover up the cursing and shouting from before.

"Alright then. I'm going to tell Robert the good news," she said and headed back inside, past Janine who seemed to be arranging the weaponry. I was glad she was gone and let out a sigh, leaning onto the deck with my hands over my face. Pidgeot walked forwards and gave me a curious look, and I decided not to bother covering things up.

"I cannot wait until this is all over," I said simply, and reached into my bag for my other PokeBalls. Undoubtedly I would have to use Vaporeon, Gligar and Pidgeot in my battle, but what would I do if they fainted? Janine and Leaf had powerful Pokemon, and Robert had his Mantine and Probopass, but I couldn't expect them to do all the fighting. Yet Magikarp wasn't ready for battling, and as for the others… I wasn't sure if I could bring myself to send them out. If something else happened to them… what could I possibly do?

"I need some help," I whispered, and I sent Vaporeon, Gligar and Magikarp out alongside Pidgeot. The others didn't notice the sound of them appearing or the sound of Magikarp as he flopped against the deck, so I was going to get away with it for now. "Hey guys," I said, and they all smiled back at me, clearly not internalizing the upcoming situation as much as I was. "I need some advice on what to do…," I said, and I began explaining. I explained about how I felt about all of this, and how I wanted to simply escape and leave it all behind. I explained how I wasn't sure if I was ready to take on Mr Williamson face to face, and how I was not ready to send the other three Pokemon out if worse came to worse. The more I explained, I kept getting flashes.

_I was running through from the cave, tears streaming down my face, concerned trainers turning and asking what was wrong, but I was focused entirely on getting towards the nearest Pokemon Center…_

"_There is nothing more we can do," a special Pokemon surgeon was telling me as I sat in a seat, shaking and whimpering. "The damage was too severe. All we can do is give them medicine for the pain and hope they can keep on battling…"_

_I turned to face my house, my bag on my shoulders, listening to the sounds of the television coming through an open window, wondering how long it would be before they noticed I had gone. But I didn't want anything major… I just wanted to leave._

"Vapor Por Eon Vapor!"

I snapped out of my day dream and found my Pokemon all staring at me, and I wondered if I had slipped off while my mind flashbacked. I shook my head as Vaporeon sprayed me with water, helping to wake me up and get me to concentrate.

"Thanks," I said, not annoyed in the slightest. I reached in and pulled out the three other PokeBalls, with their dents and scratches and damage: it had been a long time since I had fought with Electrode and Heracross, and a long time since Charizard had had a proper fight. I looked at my other Pokemon and smiled, realising those thoughts had knocked some sense into me.

"Robert says we are only five minutes away," Leaf called out from inside. "I say we start coming up with a proper assault plan. I haven't seen Pidgeot yet, so we'll have to do with Red for now." I got to my feet to head inside, still smiling as I held the PokeBalls firmly in my hands. For too long I had been running away from all the bad things in my life: my injured Pokemon, my family ignoring me to focus on Eric, my failed journey, and now I was thinking of fleeing from this final battle that would be my greatest battle ever, my greatest ever capture.

It was time to stop running.

* * *

><p>Once the boat stopped at the small beach at the bottom of Pallet Town, I began to take in all the familiar sights: benches and rubbish bins that remained from when I had come here as a child, trees that had managed to grow even taller since I'd last visit, the Tangela running through the long grass to the side like tumbleweed. I could feel a lot of memories rushing backing to me as I stepped off the gang plank, but I had to push them aside and focus on what was in front of me.<p>

Leaf had decided that going all the side of the town would be the best idea and use the trees as a way to block us, and we all changed from their formal wear into the Pokemon Catcher camouflage uniform. Janine, Robert and I agreed, and we decided to bring about three machine guns each, a variety of knives, grenades and handguns for back up. Leaf brought a rocket launcher with her, and assured me that 'she's got these sorted', while Janine brought throwing stars and a long stick that looked rather bland. Robert, who was happier now that his family was safe, was bringing a special box that he said had a lot of surprises in it, though didn't say what surprise they were. The only extra weapon I had were my metal rod, though I had no idea how to work any of the extra things on it and hoped it wasn't too hard to learn.

Leaving the boat locked up, though Robert had a special remote that he said was for back up, we headed off through the trees. It was tough walking through the semi darkness caused by the light being blocked off, and I was afraid I would trip over roots or a fallen branch and cause all the weaponry on me to activate. We walked in silence to not attract any attention, but as we walked I noted that everything seemed normal in the town: children were running around, a few elderly people were in their gardens, someone was walking several Growlithe, Poochyena and Houndour. All the buildings looked in tact, though my house was on the opposite side and out of sight. I could see the house where Red's mother lived though, as well as the Oak's house, which Leaf seemed to ignore. But after ten minutes of walking, we came across the one building we were looking for.

I could remember Professor Oak's lab now that it was right in front of me. It was a single storey, though I had heard there was a basement full of things out of the public's eye. It was a simple shining white with blue glass windows running around to provide natural light. The entrance was from blue glass sliding doors that were only about ten metres away from where we stood, and the roof was a simple triangular shape with red tiles, matching a style common throughout the town.

I had a feeling something wasn't quite right. The building was intact, with no visible damage to any part of it. As we came to a stop, I used my Pokemon Catcher training to evaluate the setting: there were children and cars and Pokemon, but the target I was here for didn't seem to be here. I listened closely for any sounds of disturbances, but all I could hear other than laughing children was something that sounded like a helicopter. I looked around, but no helicopter seemed to be in sight.

"This is strange," I whispered. "He should be here by now."

"It does seem suspicious, but he might just be gaining resources," Leaf said. "We need to secure the town then if he isn't here yet."

"Agreed," Janine said with a nod. "It is best to make things safe while we have this time than just leave the town to be sitting ducks. I say we go ahead with our current plan to make sure that he isn't in the lab, then get Oak's help to secure things." Leaf and Robert nodded, and I didn't have much choice but to go along with it. Janine moved stealthily out of the trees, and I had barely blinked when she appeared at the side, staring in through the windows. She gave a thumbs up to shows it appeared to be safe before moving around to the back entrance. Leaf and Robert than moved, the captain going to the window while Leaf rushed to the doors. I followed up with my gun raised, checking to see if anyone was following us, but things remained safe.

"Ready?" Leaf asked when I joined her at the front door, and I nodded, still trying to work out what was wrong. We moved forwards though the doors didn't budge. Leaf pulled a hand gun out and fired it three times at the top of the door, reactivating a special security sensor that she knew about. I then used force on the door and gave them a tug, causing them to slid open.

"FREEZE!" Leaf yelled as she ran in, gun raised, just as Robert smashed his window and a loud thunk signalled Janine was coming in through the back. I raised my own gun as the only two people in the open space turned around, looking shocked.

"Leaf, what are you doing?" Professor Oak cried, his grey hair and white lab coat the same as it always appeared. The other person was a woman in her twenties with long brown hair tied back and a white lab coat on as well and I felt my heart skip a beat as she turned around: perfect blue eyes, lightly tanned youthful face that looked beautiful with only a bit of make-up on, slender figure. I froze as I took in her beauty and felt rather weak in the knees, the image of her face stirring some sort of memory, but she was turning as Janine burst in through a door and Robert jumped through the shattered windows.

"Granddad, we need to evacuate the town," Leaf said, lowering her gun as she walked forwards, though Janine opened up a number of cupboards and checked underneath tables, just in case Mr Williamson was under there.

"What are you on about Leaf?" Professor Oak said, rather overwhelmed by what was happening. "Why are you armed? Who are these people?" Leaf quickly introduced me and Robert and explained about the situation with the Pokemon Catchers, giving me a chance to catch my breath and look around. The part we were in was clearly the main part of the lab: rows of computers of different sizes, multiple tables loaded with various objects, rows of beaker and test tubes around, shelves loaded with Pokemon and about a dozen gigantic machines that had different purposes were around. The door Janine had come through led to a hallway, so there were possibly other rooms behind.

"Oh my, are you serious?" Professor Oak said, and I turned back into the conversation.

"No granddad, I thought I would come in here with a bunch of guns for the hell of it," Leaf snapped, and Professor Oak simply sighed and nodded, looking around at everyone looking rather annoyed, though he managed a slight smile when he looked at Robert and I, though I was more interested in his attractive assistant.

"We'd better get moving then," the professor said. "Daisy, you gather together some of our own weapons and the Pokemon. You all come with me and alert everyone that they must leave immediately. Leaf, you contact the army… see if Major Malfunction is willing to get off his ass and do something for once."

"The phone's moved over there," the assistant, who I realised must be Daisy, said and pointed towards a table. Leaf nodded and rushed towards it as Professor Oak walked forwards, and I realised I was expected to walk with them. I hoped we would be able to get the town's people out in time before something more serious happened, and I used this determination to help focus me as we walked out of the lab, Janine passing the professor a gun for protection.

However, I paused.

From all this time spent as a Pokemon Catcher, my abilities to scan a surrounding and notice what I was looking for were at the maximum, and these abilities pointed two things out to me. Firstly, the sound of the helicopter was much louder, meaning it was closer, and it sounded as if there was more than one. Secondly, something spinning caught my eye: a weathervane with a metal Torchic on top stood on a nearby house, spinning around very rapidly despite the fact there was no wind.

"STOP!" I shouted, and the other paused and turned back around, wondering what I was on about as I pulled a PokeBall out of my pocket and threw it. Vaporeon suddenly formed, ready for action after hearing our planning back on the boat. "Spray an Aurora Beam near that weather vane," I instructed, pointing to the culprit.

"Vapooooor!" He said and raised his head, firing the rainbow coloured beam.

"What are you doing?" Janine asked angrily, but I pointed upwards, telling her to focus on what Vaporeon was doing. The Aurora Beam just made it over to where the vane was and he turned his head to continue the rainbow coloured beam's firing. As the beam reached the street I found myself losing hope in my theory, but than it happened: something in the middle of the air was hit, causing ice to float in mid air. The other three gasped as they connected that to the sound of the helicopters, yet I was already cursing and running back indoors.

"THEY'RE HERE!" I shouted at Leaf and Daisy just as screams erupted behind me. I turned back to see two helicopters, identical to the ones from the Pal Park, had materialized behind me and their doors had opened up. People in black clothing were leaping out, and I was shocked to realise several cars were pulling up from alleyways and Route 1, more people coming out.

"Vaporeon, Aurora Beam the surrounding ground!" I shouted. It dawned on me at that moment how long these plans must have been going on, how desperate Frostbite and Mr Williamson must be to go to these great lengths. Where had these weapons and vehicles come from? Who were all these black clothed people? Where was the money coming from that funded this? Well, that I could take a stab at. The money we were getting paid to catch people's Pokemon and make people happy was fuelling two people's diabolical plan to take over the world.

_So much for charity, _I thought as Oak, Janine and Robert ran past me. Hadn't they told me they were doing all this to fit their demand, or had that just been a lie to cover up what their real plans were? I pushed these thoughts out of my head, the last one being if I would ever learn the whole story, and watched as Vaporeon froze over the grass in front of us. The mysterious figures were heading towards the lab, leaving everyone else alone for now, but for how long?

"GET INSIDE!" Robert yelled and my ear and heaved me backwards, and Leaf closed the doors as Vaporeon ran in. This wouldn't hold for long, but I was pleased to see everyone was armed and that a variety of Pokemon had been unleashed: Leaf had sent out Blastoise, Ninetales and Raikou, Janine her Nidoqueen, Rapidash and Arbok, Oak had sent out an Aerodactyl and Magneton, Robert his Mantine and Probopass and Daisy finished things off with a Ditto and a Blissey.

"Good luck," I whispered to Vaporeon as I sent out Pidgeot and Gligar, moving backwards to the others. Vaporeon whispered his luck back as well, and we all stood ready for the battle to ensue.

At once all of the glass shattered. Daisy and Leaf yelled as it soared across the room, and men leapt in with machine guns blazing. Most of us ducked down as the bullets hit machines, beakers and computers around the room. Janine, Robert and I all pulled our own triggers, and I watched as two men crashed backwards, blood pouring from wounds, and others ducked for cover or slipped back outside. Pokemon attacks soared around the room, with an AncientPower knocking three men backwards and an Ice Beam freezing one man in his path. But despite the fact we had an advantage, I wondered how long we would be able to keep this up: already many of Oak's possessions had been destroyed, fires erupting on his benches as holes were blasted into the wall. Another figure was shot dead, but their bullets kept on coming and we were all stuck with little where else to run.

"People, people, please!" A voice called out from behind, and I turned and raised my gun as Mr Williamson strolled casually in through the back door, which had been blasted off its hinges by a misguided attack. I was ready to shoot him right there and then, but something in the back of my head was holding me back. His men stopped firing though, and Oak lowered his hand, saying we should do the same.

"Wise move," Mr Williamson said as he paused. "It would be very bad of you to shoot an unarmed man for no reason," he added, his lips curling into a smile. "This could all be over in a moment. All I ask is that you hand over all the technology, research, weaponry and Pokemon in this lab and allow me to march on to the Indigo Plateau and Johto League Complex, and no one in this town has to die."

"Never!" Leaf yelled. "How about you lower your helicopters, all your men get in a nice neat row and we cart you off to jail for murder, conspiracy, terrorism, breaking and entering, taking hostages, robbery and using a charity to fuel whatever sick game this is." Mr Williamson laughed at her words, and I was finding it harder to shoot him.

"My dear, this is not a game," he said as he laughed. "We have been planning this for the best part of eighteen months, and we are not going to let it stop us now. Yes, our original plan may have backfired since Mr Archer shot Isabella…" He paused there, his voice shaking slightly, and I filed this fact away in order to use it later, though the man quickly recovered "though it was no hassle rearranging things and coming here. I knew you would all come hear, and taking some important hostages is just what I need."

"The Indigo Plateau and the International Army have already been alerted!" Daisy shouted, her voice very soft and feminine. "You won't be able to get away with this!"

"Ah, but there is on thing you haven't realised," Mr Williamson hissed. "No one can escape and no one can get in." Everyone seemed rather confused by this, but I knew what it meant: a teleportation trap, just like the one I used on that Natu, would be over us. No entry, no escape.

We were trapped.

"Here is how things are going to work," Mr Williamson said, building off the misery fuelling through the room. "You are going to hand everything over like I said before, than we are going to tie you up and put you in the helicopter. After we have put you in the helicopter, you will come with us to the Indigo Plateau where you will stand before Red. I will tell him to hand over his role, or his mentor and girlfriend will be shot before him… after you others are dealt with first." Mr Williamson beamed brightly at them all, and I wondered if anyone had any plans, such as just shooting our way out of here or planning to let use be captured and then do something. But all their faces seemed grim, with Daisy even beginning to tear up, and I knew escape was probably not likely. If any of us or our Pokemon moved, we'd simply all get shot… it was hopeless.

Suddenly, I heard something whining. I turned slightly and could see men outside were moving away, rushing towards the forest, and looking out the smashed windows I could see things were being whipped up into the air and were beginning to spin around, almost as if caught in something…

"MOVE!" I screamed and leapt to my feet, and everyone turned around as the whining got louder, and I could see what looked like a purple tornado forming outside. Everyone, even Mr Williamson, backed away just as it happened: one of the helicopters crashed directly through the roof, exploding as it fell. I grabbed Vaporeon, Pidgeot and Gligar and dived to the ground as the scorching shockwave washed over, bits of metal cutting through my clothes and touching my skin. The entire building was shaking and I was surprised it wasn't falling down, though my main concern was on protecting my Pokemon.

When I felt the heat lessen I looked up and saw everything was glowing orange. I turned around to see the front half of the building had collapsed, and it was beginning to burn along with the flaming wreckage of the helicopter that lay beneath. I looked to the sky and saw Leaf's Pidgeot flying away from the bullets streaming from the other helicopter, its Twister being what caused the helicopter to crash into the building. Looking up also showed how closed I was to being killed, bits of wood, roof and electrical wires sparking overhead. The only thing that had saved me had been a table next to me that had taken most of the rubble, though it wouldn't save me again.

"We have to move," I told my Pokemon and they leapt to their feet. I saw Leaf and Janine were firing bullets at many of the men outside, their Pokemon running after others or attacking their own Pokemon. I could see Daisy's Blissey was in the battle as well, throwing Egg Bombs after Pokemon a Machamp and Primeape, who moments before had been using Fire Punch and Ice Punch respectively, and I knew they were the two I had been tricked into recapturing. I had no idea where Oak, Robert or Daisy had gone, or Mr Williamson for that fact, but I knew we would have to escape from this building.

"Come on!" I yelled, and moved towards the back door, thinking it would be the safest way to escape.

"Trevor…," a voice croaked behind me, and I stopped and turned around, wondering who it was. It watched as Probopass and Mantine moved aside from a corner of the room, their faces grim, and I felt a sickening sensation rise up in me as I stared at Robert. Poor, innocent, friendly Robert, leaning against the corner with jagged metal sticking out of his chest, blood pouring down his uniform.

"Robert!" I cried and ran forwards, getting down on my knees and staring at the metal, wondering if there was anything I could do about it. I reached out to touch it, but Robert shook his head as he coughed, passing two things forwards: one was the remote control used to lock the boat, the second was the strange box he had brought with him.

"There isn't any time," the captain said. "I overheard Cameron and that bitch talking about this teleportation trap: it just as strong as the others in keeping things it, but due to the sheer size of it, as it had to lock a whole town in, it is severely weak. Find a way to upset the sixteen points holding it to the ground, than fire the strongest attack at the point they came from. This will cause it to collapse, though it would be best if the helicopter is not able to hit you.

After you do that, press the blue button on the back of the remote. Tell the boat the password 'Judy' and than tell it to round all of the black clothed men up. After that, do whatever the fuck you want," Robert said, pausing only to cough violently, spraying Trevor with blood. I nodded and listened to every word, knowing the captain's dying words would be important.

"What about the box?" I asked.

"Press the red button and stand back," Robert said. "Once they have formed, they will be under your command." I figured he meant Pokemon and decided not to bother him with asking. Robert was going pale and was coughing more and more blood, and I knew he didn't have long.

"Thank you for this. You may have just saved Kanto," I said, and Robert smiled grimly.

"Tell my wife and daughter I love them," he said, "and when you see Cameron, tell him I say 'fuck you' before you shoot the bastard." I managed a light laugh, but when I looked back down I saw Robert's eyes had shut, and he didn't seem to be breathing.

"Thank you," I said once again with a slight sob, knowing a good man had just died, before looking up at Probopass and Mantine. They both looked sad and I could imagine why, but they knew that there was a cause to follow and they turned towards me, and it took me only a second to realise they were going to answer to me.

"Help Leaf and Janine, protect the citizens," was all I could say, but the two Pokemon knew this and they flew and hovered out through the destroyed building, instantly helping Blissey with Machamp and Primeape. I looked at my Pokemon, who were waiting patiently for me even though their eyes burned with passion.

"Let's kill the bastard," I said, and they cheered as we ran forwards. I decided not to go through the back way in case someone was waiting, and instead pocketed the remote control and the box and pulled my gun out. I fired bullets at the ground to scare several men away, allowing Vaporeon to fire an Aurora Beam to freeze two together. I ducked to avoid a sparking wire and a burst of heat from the wreckage before sprinting across the grass, firing my gun at those behind. I watched as Janine speared a man through the throat with her stick and decided I might just try my like on the central street.

Not that it was any better.

Daisy was the lone human fighter out here, desperately firing back at the men. No citizen seemed to be on the streets, leaving Daisy and several Pokemon to fight it out against the black clothed men. Ninetales, Nidoqueen, Leaf's Pidgeot, Oak's Pokemon and a second Aerodactyl, most likely Ditto transformed, were fighting against the men and a variety of Pokemon, bullets and attacks soaring across. One of their cars exploded rather in front of a house, causing the entrance to the house to be blown in. This battle was getting serious, and I knew I would have to do what Robert told me, and quickly.

As I turned to face my Pokemon, I saw something moving behind Daisy. She was so focused on fighting against the people in front of her she hadn't noticed someone was coming up behind her, bleeding seeping from wounds and glass held in their hands.

"STOP!" I shouted and fire a bullet. Unfortunately, the machine gun was a lot stronger than I expected, and about a dozen bullets tore through person's stomach and chest. Daisy screamed and turned as the dead figure collapsed to the ground behind her.

"Thank you!" She called, and I simply nodded, feeling a slightly giddy feeling at her words. I looked up to see the helicopter was still hovering in the distance, and the ice on its front showed it was the one Vaporeon had hit earlier. Robert seemed to think it was key to destroy this machine, and I didn't wish to argue with him. I turned around to see Vaporeon and Pidgeot were getting involved with the fight, facing off with a Yanmega that had appeared behind them.

"Gligar, Magikarp: it seems like this is up to you," I said, and Vaporeon turned and nodded to show he was fine with battling.

"GAR!" Gligar called happily, but I grabbed one of his claws and sprinted forwards. I grabbed one of the grenades from my bag as we sprinted, as well as Magikarp's PokeBall, and made sure I wasn't going to throw the wrong thing. I ran along the front porch of a nearby house, where the windows had already shattered and the wood helping to fence the porch in was on fire, and leapt over the other side to a clear alley between two houses. Gligar and I stared out onto the main road and saw the helicopter was still a while away, but it was surrounded by Mr Williamson's men and Pokemon. I knew I would have to clear them away in order for my plan, which I had only thought up in ten seconds and was prone to failure, to work.

"Gligar, stay here and only come out when the explosion has gone," I said. Gligar seemed stunned by this and jabbered after me, but I was already running across this porch was more damaged than the last and getting closer to the battle. No one seemed to notice me as I jumped off the second porch and managed to get my arms around the fence of the third, though it broke beneath me. I looked ahead and cursed as I saw a car was in the alleyway between this house and the next, meaning I couldn't run across this porch like I had planned.

"Oh stuff it," I growled and pulled the pin out of the grenade. I lobbed it across to the middle of the men that were only a few metres away, though their attention was on Daisy and the Pokemon fighting back. I ran down into this alleyway and towards the trees as the grenade exploded. I turned back in time to see men being blown down the street, and heard a second and then third explosion as the surrounding cars were destroyed as well.

"GLIGAR!" I shouted as I pressed the button on the PokeBall, causing Magikarp to form in my arms. "There's no time for flopping, save your energy!" I said, and was surprised when Magikarp remained still, his one eye on this side staring up at me in either stupidity or out of curiosity.

"Gli Gli!" Gligar called as he floated around and landed next to me, and I bent down to be closer to him.

"I want you to begin flying around the air and trying to get the helicopter to shoot you," I said, realising how horrible I sounded as I spoke. "You're fast though and you're a Ground type, so the bullets won't be able to kill you as your skin is too tough." I thought Gligar would get scared or annoyed, and though his eyes were slightly worrisome, the FlyScorpion simply nodded obediently at my command. "Wow, really? Alright then…," I said, figuring it was best not to push things. "You go do that now, alright?"

"Gar Gar Gli!" Gligar said, and turned and took off towards the scene. I watched him disappear behind the weather vane that had started all of this and then ran off towards another alleyway. I hoped to get away from the explosion, but found my first signs of the teleportation trap, which I hadn't been really looking out for. The metal bar signalled a curve and that I wouldn't be able to get as far away as I wanted, but I was able to see that this bar was shaking slightly as more gunfire and explosions occurred behind me: one powerful attack should be enough to make it deactivated.

"Magikarp, this is your time to shine," I told the Water type as I sprinted down the next alleyway. Magikarp simply flopped to show he was listening, and I leapt over some flaming wreckage blasted off one of the cars, its flaming chassis only a few metres away. There was a small crater where the grenade had landed, and I could see quite a few men had been killed, either by the blast, flying wreckage or more gunfire. There was no around that was focusing on me, and I smiled as I slipped across a half blown apart porch and rushed to be underneath the helicopter.

The wind was very strong here, and I had to shut my eyes to avoid getting hit by dust. I shielded them with one hand and was able to see Gligar flying high above me, swirling and spinning around as bullets soared after him.

"Perfect," I whispered, and looked back down at Magikarp. "I need you to gather a lot of Bounce energy and than use a Bounce Flail on the bottom of the helicopter, just like when you hit all the guards back at the Resort Gorgeous."

"Karp Karp," Magikarp said, and I placed him down on the ground. I backed away as he began to bounce slightly in the air, gathering together all of his energy and not taking off too soon. Gligar was managing to keep the attention on him, and I simply backed away, waiting for the moment when Magikarp would leap up and hit the helicopter, hoping nothing went wrong before then. I was getting nervous that things were going to fail, especially as I had no idea where Oak or Mr Williamson were, and I couldn't help but remain feeling bad for Robert.

"WATCH OUT!" A voice yelled, and I turned around just in time to get blood sprayed across my face. I recoiled in disgust as a black clothed man collapsed against me, blood seeping from where his right eye should be. I placed him on the ground and looked up to see Daisy running forwards, joined by the Pokemon that had been fighting with her as well, and I was satisfied to see Vaporeon and Pidgeot with her.

"Looks like we're even," Daisy called out as she engaged in a fight with a trio of men, though the two Aerodactyl's swept down and attacked one of them. Vaporeon and Pidgeot rushed over to me, and I went to greet them when I noticed Gligar soaring down and turned around: Magikarp was flying upwards, engulfed in lilac energy and moving rather spastically.

"RUN!" I screamed, and forced my three Pokemon backwards, keeping an eye out. The covered men looked up to see what I was going on about just as Magikarp struck the bottom of the helicopter. It was forced upwards, the spinning blades instantly hitting the trap and the rest of the machine followed. Electrical sparks flew from the blades as they were torn off, soaring down and decapitating one of the clothed men. But Magikarp forced the helicopter upwards, and we watched as it exploded into flames, just like the other three today. But as it burst into flames, I suddenly realised a flaw in my plan.

"MAGIKARP!" I screamed and went to rush forwards, but Vaporeon, Pidgeot and Gligar collectively held me back, stopping me from charging forwards. I simply had to watch as the flying helicopter crashed into the ground, the burning metal covering any sign of Magikarp. I had no idea where the shiny Pokemon had disappeared to or if he had survived, and my stomach began to feel sick: I'd let another one of my Pokemon get injured, possibly die, the opposite of what I wanted to.

"Vaporeon, use Surf, quickly!" I screamed. Vaporeon paused for a moment, and I wondered if he thought Magikarp had died and I was just wasting time, but than his eyes glowed blue. From the crater where the grenade had hit I heard a rumbling, and I watched as a pipe burst open, a wave of water rising up and sweeping across the wreckage. It caused several bleeding men to get washed towards the trap as well, but I didn't care for them and ran forwards. As the water faded away around my feet, I moved towards the wreckage that was no longer ablaze.

"MAGIKARP!" I screamed, wondering if he was still around. I know it seems silly to care so much for a Magikarp I never really wanted in the first place, but how could I let him die trying to save me and everyone else? It wasn't right, and the poor little Pokemon had begun to grow on me during our short time together.

"Trevor, be careful!" Daisy shouted. "Just because the obvious fires are out doesn't mean that you won't stop the electrical stuff from sparking! Get out of there before something ignites the fuel!" I ignored her, more focused on trying to find Magikarp even though I should be thinking of a way to save the town. But only seconds after she spoke, I felt the wreckage move beneath my feet. I cursed as something glowed underneath and I turned to flee before I was blown apart. Something was roaring, and I knew that this could not be good…

"GYRAAAAAA!" I turned as the glowing continued, but the tangled wreckage of the helicopter was merely shoved aside as something glowing and serpentine rose up. I was shocked at first, but once the glowing disappeared I felt both relief and joy: in front of me was a red Gyarados, roaring and staring down at the masked men who were beginning to back away.

"Damn, I wonder how many experience points blowing up a helicopter gets you," Daisy said as she came to my side, joined by my Pokemon. I couldn't help but laugh and ran forwards, hugging Gyarados around the middle and found him coiling around to return the affection.

"Good job," I said, and Gyarados let out a low grumble in response. I wanted to stay like this for the rest of the day, leave everyone else to fight, but I heard something sparking and looked around: one of the men had walked into the trap and was seemed to be having a seizure as he leant against it, limbs flailing and head twitching. I was the only one who knew how to defeat things, and I couldn't leave the others to exhaust their Pokemon's moves and bullets while I continued to flee from things. I let go of Gyarados and turned back towards Daisy, who was shooting some of the men as they rushed over to fight with Leaf and Janine instead.

"Listen Daisy," I said, and quickly explained what Robert had told me about the trap, destroying it and getting the boat in. "Basically we need a really powerful attack to get the metal loose, and than another powerful attack to destroy the center."

"That sounds doable," Daisy said, and I was surprised at how calmly she took this: clearly, just like Leaf and Janine, she had been involved in many crazy things in the past. "We'll need an attack that would usually hit multiple Pokemon at once, as that way it could hit multiple bits of the metal instead. I think Earthquake would be our best option."

"Do any of your Pokemon know Earthquake?" I asked and she shook her head. "Gligar does, but I don't think his would be powerful enough. We need a more experienced Poke –," but I froze there as the answer suddenly occurred to me: a powerful Pokemon that most likely knew Earthquake and would have a lot of experience on it.

Eric's Donphan.

Last time I had heard anything from them had been a Christmas card my mother had sent to the Pokemon Catchers, hoping I would contact them, but my shame of failing on my journey and my stupid, selfish hurting at being ignored caused me to ignore it. I had seen it though, and Eric had been standing there like a mini me with a Donphan by his side. If it knew Earthquake, it might just have the power to disable the metal bars. But could I really face my family after all this time and demand use of a Pokemon? Would they be able to forgive me… and would I be able to forgive them in my own twisted way?"

"Daisy, you and your Pokemon protect me as I run," I said. "I know someone who might be able to help us. After I go to see them, tell Leaf and Janine about my plan and get them ready to use a powerful attack on that," and I pointed to the large metal disc being held in place in the middle of the town and was the point that had to be hit.

"Who will protect you though?" Daisy asked, and I noted some concern in her voice, and I paused for a second as I felt rather flattered. Something slippery hit me in the back, and I decided to focused and not risk another tail lashing from Vaporeon. I wasn't quite sure what to say, or what would indeed protect me, but than I remembered something.

"This!" I said, and pulled the box Robert had given me out. Daisy looked rather confused, but I quickly pressed the red button and placed it in the crater. "I don't know what this does, but apparently we need to stand back." Daisy and the Pokemon nodded and scuttled away as the box shuddered and jumped. We got behind the wreckage of a car as the box suddenly open up, causing multiple bursts of white energy to be released. For a second I thought it was some highly scientific bomb, but than the more obvious solution came to me: this was something made by the Pokemon Catchers, after all, and if a captain had it, it was clearly meant to be used in emergency Pokemon Catcher situations.  
>It was Pokemon.<p>

I watched as possibly every Pokemon that remained in the Catchers possession that wasn't already being used was released from a box. This must be some high tech method used to bring in extra Pokemon if a capture is going wrong. I stared at the Pokemon pouring out: Krabby and Kingler, Psyduck, Tentacool, Spearow and Fearow, Meowth, Hoppip, Slowpoke, Dunsparce, Geodude and Graveler, Skarmory, Cubone, Wooper, Marill, Bellsprout and Weepinbell, Oddish and Gloom: practically every Pokemon available around the Sevii Islands was here. My drop had dropped down to around my chest, and looking around showed that everyone else was surprised by the sudden arrival of Pokemon. Whats more, they all seemed to be staring rather loyally at me, and just like with Probopass and Mantine, they had been passed into my possession.

"Um… alright," I said, though I had no clue of what to say. "Come with us and fire any attacks at anyone wearing black clothing. Daisy here will show you who to fight with, though some of you come with me and my Pokemon for protection," I said. The army of Pokemon all nodded, and I looked down at my actual team and shrugged, though they all seemed rather stunned by the sudden rise in team mates. "Alright then, let's go!"

As we moved, I found that the street was mostly clear. The fighting all seemed to be coming from around Professor Oak's lab, and I figured after the explosion everyone had fled there. We moved quickly though so Daisy could get there and join in the battle. Some of their cars and injured men lay on the streets and in the alleyways, and my Pokemon rushed off to deal with them. I could see people staring through shattered windows, wondering if it was safe to come out yet, but than ducking away when they saw us approaching. It was best if we got this wrapped up soon and got the residents out of danger before anything more happened.

"Good luck getting the Pokemon," Daisy called, and I saw that we had reached the sight of the battle, roaring Pokemon and the hail of bullets signalling it was still going strong.

"Good luck to you," I replied, and our group split up: Vaporeon and I ran forwards for a dozen of our army, Pidgeot, Gligar and Gyarados flying overhead, while Daisy took all the other Pokemon and went in attacks and guns blazing.

"Vapor Vap Eon?" Vaporeon said, and I merely grunted as we began to run.

"I know the way," I replied, and took the Pokemon down a wide side street leading to many more houses. It seemed strange to be back here after all of this time, and I could feel memories rushing back to me of playing in the street, the people that lived and use to live in the area, parties I'd attend, injuries I sustained on next to a tree we ran past. I was beginning to feel rather emotional and had to shake my head to clear my thoughts as we ducked down another street to avoid the trap and ran through a very narrow mud path between several houses that smelt like vomit before emerging onto another street.

There it was.

I came to a stop as I stared at the house directly ahead. Two storeys high, painted a baby blue with red roof tiles like Oak's lab. Windows were closed tightly against their white frames, and the white wooden door was mostly likely bolted. There were flower pots and beds marking the edge of a house, and a simple wooden mailbox was to the right of the path leading to the door.

I was home.

I knew there wasn't time to mull things over, but I had to pause for a second and take it all in before I knocked on the door. I had left this house without another word years ago, mostly as a way of trying to get attention and acting out after years of being ignored and gaining no sympathy for my severely injured Pokemon and the trouble I had gone through. I shouldn't have been so selfish, but all I wanted was a bit of loving. The only time I had been happy was when we got involved with the Pokemon Catchers with fundraising and organizing events, and that was the only time my family truly showed me focus. It was rather ironic in my opinion to be back here because of the Pokemon Catchers, but they had been the only place I thought I could get salvation…

"Reon Por Vap," Vaporen said by my feet, but I shook my head and wiped a single tear away from my eyes.

"I need to do this. There's no turning back," I said rather determinedly, and I marched forwards, Vaporeon at my side. When I got to the mailbox I realised I couldn't bring my army with me and told them all to stay there, including my three flyers, who reluctantly settled to the ground. I walked briskly up the concrete path and in no time at all was up at the front door, knocking before I even realised it.

"We don't want any trouble," a voice called gruffly from the other side, and the door slowly opened up but stopped due to a security chain. My heart skipped a beat as I stared through the gap and saw my mother's face for the first time in years: brown hair going grey, brown eyes, her face lined with age.

"Hello," I said hoarsely, not sure what else to say, but than the door was slammed in my face. I had been expecting this and simply knocked lightly again. I heard voices from the other side and wondered if they were debating things, and then heard the chain moving. The door was flung open and two people nearly identical to me appeared. My father was the same height as me, but with grey hair sticking out of a white shirt that barely contained a pot belly. His brown hair had gone completely grey and was thining, and his face was identical to mine but paler and with wrinkles as well. Eric stood behind him, four years my junior and looked it: his hair was dyed black and his face was more alive and younger despite the minimal age gap, and he had muscular arms and a broad chest underneath his shirt.

"Look who finally came back," my father, Eric Senior, growled as he looked me up and down and glanced at the Pokemon behind. "Are you part of some weird terrorist group? If you are, don't expect us to hide you from the cops!"

"I'm not a terrorist," I snapped back, still feeling my father's hatred, "I am trying to stop the terrorists and save this town!" I quickly explained about the corrupt Pokemon Catchers and coming here to stop the people, leaving out my deeper involvement and killing Frostbite. My mother kept gasping, though I wasn't sure if it was due to the general horror of the situation or due to the fact I was involved. Eric moved closer, looking rather curious about what I had to say.

"Anyway, if we have any chance of saving the town, I need to borrow Eric's Donphan if it knows Earthquake to help destroy this barrier," I explained, but as I finished talking, I could tell from their expressions that my words had done very little to change my father's attitude, who simply glared at me as if I was lying.

"That sounds like a load of a shit," he cursed, and grabbed the door. "Come back when you have a decent reason to talk to us!" As the door shut, I knew it wouldn't open again and quickly put a foot in it. Using the mild amount of strength I had from training I forced the door back open and grasped one of the machine guns, making my mother squeal.

"Look, I am not here for any drama," I said. "I know walking out wasn't the right thing to do and I probably should have stayed in contact, but I had my reasons for leaving. Getting ignored for a lot of my teenage life wasn't exactly a walk in the park, and once I had the money I had no reason to stay. I am sorry, but I do deserve an apologise as well… in my mind," I said, wondering just what this was making me sound like. "Hate me all you want, but try explaining to all your friends and neighbours that the reason they have no house and people are dead and dying is because you wouldn't let me have a Pokemon for two minutes!" I didn't think this was working, as my father simply looked angrier, but I was glad to get it off my chest and frankly could die now knowing they would have this as a final memory.

"You can have him." I hadn't heard Eric speak for a while and didn't recognise his slightly feminine voice, but turned as he stepped forwards. "I frankly don't want to die, and I don't really care about anything else," he said, smiling awkwardly as he stepped past my father. Eric Senior looked like he was going to say something, but simply grunted and stormed off. I smiled at Eric and went to thank him, but my mother rushed forwards and wrapped her arms around me.

"Good luck," she whispered, and I felt her tears trickling onto my shoulder. I gave her an uneasy hug back, but had to pull away as Eric held a PCM Ball up, containing his Donphan, and there wasn't any time to spare on reacquainting with my family. My mother smiled as she closed the door, and Eric, Vaporeon and I descended the steps to rejoin the Pokemon, the sound of an explosion coming from the lab.

"Been well?" Eric asked, and I was rather thrown by the question.

"Asides from the last month, yes. The pay is decent and I have a small house at Boon Island. Yourself?"

"I'm at Arcethian University studying business, plan to move to Saffron City and get a job at Silph Co. sometime in the near future. I don't have any time for Pokemon, but Donphan exercises with me and we occasionally battle."

"Oh nice, that's good to hear. Seeing anyone?"

"Yeah, this guy in my class called Jack." I felt my eyes bulge and wasn't sure if he was joking or not, but I realised I would have no clue if he was or not. I looked at him and saw he wasn't really smiling. "I guess that never came up in the Christmas cards then," he said awkwardly. I stared at him, still rather confused, but suddenly found myself laughing. I wasn't sure why and knew it wasn't appropriate, but the laugh escaped from my lips and I couldn't stop it. I even had to stop walking as I doubled over, and while Vaporeon looked confused, Eric began to laugh as well.

"You could have all died and I wouldn't get told until the week after your funerals," I laughed, and despite the rather grim and depressing backing to that comment, Eric and I continued to laugh.

"Pore Vap," Vaporeon growled, and I figured we had to keep walking. A metal bar was just up ahead, and it would be perfect to destroy. I managed to stop laughing and stood up straight again and looked across at Eric, guilt rising up in me. He looked at me and possibly could see it, but we both looked away and put it behind us.

"So, all we have to do is an Earthquake?" Eric said as we moved towards the bar, and I nodded.

"Hopefully just one, I'm not sure what will happen," I added, and Eric nodded and came to a halt. I paused as well, and watched intently, along with all the Pokemon, as Eric threw his PCM Ball forwards. It burst open with white energy, and his Donphan blew his trunk as he formed a few feet away, looking at me with that look you give people when you aren't sure where you recognise them from, and than seemed startled by all the Pokemon behind us.

"Donphan, we need you to use Earthquake on that metal bar behind you right now: make it extra powerful," Eric called. I signalled for the Pokemon to move aside to avoid getting hit if the bar fell, and everyone did with Eric and I going opposite sides.

"Don-PHAAAN!" Donphan cried. I was rather tense at this point, and I simply hoped things would work out as well as Robert had said. The Ground type reared to his back legs, brown energy swirling around his front feet and his trunk, and brought them crashing down onto the bars.

It seemed as if an Earthquake was happening in the air: there were no noises and the ground didn't move, but due to the electrically created barriers and all the miniature bars holding the bigger bars in place, it looked like things were spinning. There was no rumbling either, only dramatic creaking as the trap shuddered and shook. I cheered with delight along with my Pokemon, and looked at this bar to see it seemed to have come out of the ground. Hopefully the others had as well, and all we had to do was hit the central disc and bringing it all crashing down.

"Thank you so much!" I yelled to Eric and rushed forwards and hugged him, and he hugged me back. I found this rather comforting, and we remained in this embrace for a few moments. "I'm sorry for leaving," I whispered.

"I know why you left, so I should be the one that's sorry," Eric replied.

"You shouldn't be sorry, it's not your fault you got cancer," I said. As I said this, something suddenly occurred to me. I pulled away from the hug as if I'd been shocked, and Eric looked rather confused. "Um, we'd better get going!" I said quickly to cover up the thoughts, and Eric nodded.

"Good luck! Visit us more often!"

"Thanks and I'll try!" I yelled back and began sprinting backwards, Vaporeon by my side and the Pokemon joining me. The explosions and gunfire sounded a lot closer and I figured the battle was moving, but my main focus as I ran back was the revelation I had possibly formed, though I had to be sure before I did anything rash…

As we rounded the bend, I came to a halt and gasped.

The battle had been forced onto out the main street, and it seemed to have split into a clear two sided war: Leaf, Janine, Daisy and the Pokemon were all in front of him, while the masked men had backed away and were firing bullets from behind buildings and flaming cars destroyed by the fighting. Bullets were firing everywhere and I ducked to the ground to avoid getting hit. If this fighting kept going on, innocent people were bound to get injured, along with any one of us or our Pokemon.

"LEAF!" I yelled, and saw her brown hair flicker slightly as she glanced down at me.

"WHAT?" She shouted back.

"WE NEED TO FIRE A POWERFUL ATTACK AT THE DISC!" I shouted back.

"DAISY SAID, BUT WHAT DO YOU THINK?"

"USE RAIKOU!" I screamed back. "GET DITTO AS WELL FOR BACK UP POWER!"

"GOOD IDEA!" Leaf cried back, and Daisy had turned and nodded to show her agreement with the plan. "RAIKOU, THUNDER!"

"TRANSFORM AND COPY!" Daisy bellowed.

"**MOVE**!" I cried at everyone, my throat feeling hoarse as I let out the loudest cry possible. Everyone ducked down, Janine firing her last few bullets, and I signalled for my Pokemon to move backwards. Vaporeon let out the cry and they rushed backwards behind the buildings. I watched as a second Raikou formed next to the normal legendary, and they stared up at the central disc, thunder clouds forming and crackling outside.

"RAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIII!" The two yelled before Leaf, Daisy and Janine and their Pokemon had a proper chance to flee. I felt the power as the two bolts of electricity were fired upwards, and I watched from the safety of the alleyway as they struck the disc.

The effects were instant: the disc exploded upon impact, and the shockwave destroyed several smaller arms that were meant to be keeping things together. I watched as the smaller arms began to snap and collapse, the explosion shaking throughout the entire structure. Sparks flew as it continued to collapse, and creaks echoed throughout the main sixteen arms began to tilt.

"THEY'LL COLLAPSE!" I cried, and everyone watched in horror as two near the entrance fell forwards, one of them swiping through the back of a house. I turned around, very glad that the trap was broken but horrified as three more arms fell, causing damage to at least four more buildings.

"Fire your attacks at the arms, try and get them to fall the other way!" I shouted. Vaporeon instantly unleashed a Surf at one of the ones nearest to us, and the Pokemon I had sent out charged forwards to fire their own attacks. Gyarados, Gligar and Pidgeot flew up and struck one of the arms simultaneously, pushing it backwards towards the trees.

"Excellent!" I cried, and reached into my pocket to grab the remote when I heard a scream coming from behind me. I turned around in shock and saw Daisy simply standing there, froze in fear as an arm came crashing down towards her. I ran forwards as fast I could and dived forwards, colliding with her and pushing her towards the ground. The arm narrowly missed us, hitting the ground with a thunderous, ground shaking crash. Daisy and I rolled forwards, but my arms were still around her and we ended up on top of each other a few metres away, staring breathlessly at each other.

"Thank you," Daisy said, smiling slightly and leant forwards and kissed me on the cheek. I simply smiled as well, and was tempted to kiss her and see if she felt the same way, but that was ruined when Vaporeon ran alongside, the remote clasped in his mouth.

"Thanks," I said, grabbing it and getting to my feet. Daisy brushed herself off as well and stepped up, and we simply nodded slightly as we turned away. Leaf and Janine had scattered to give orders over stopping the barriers, leaving me, my Pokemon and assorted others along with the masked people. They appeared to have gathered together, the falling arms frightening them. I figured they had expected things to go their way, but now that the barrier had fallen, things were going to go how I wanted them to now.

"Let's see what this boat does," I said, and pressed the blue button. "JUDY!" I shouted. The remote buzzed when I pressed it and again when I shouted, and I looked down at the boat in the distance, wondering if I had succeeded. It appeared I had when the boat suddenly began to turn around as if to face me. I was rather taken aback by this, and didn't expect a large gun exactly like the one you'd expect to see on an army tank flip out from the boat.

"What the…," I mumbled, watching gobsmacked as the boat moved forwards, sliding up onto the ground: apparently the boats had been designed as back up army tanks as well as a method of transportation, I could see other guns opening up on the decks and wheels descending to help steady the boat. I was so taken aback I forgot there was a purpose for setting the strange tank-boat onto the ground.

"CAPTURE THE PEOPLE IN BLACK OUTFITS RIGHT THERE!" I yelled, pointing to the group in the middle. They heard this and turned around to face the boat and screamed, but the tank-boat fired a strange blue beam that looked like an Ice Beam, and indeed the people began to become frozen.

"Yes!" I cried, clapping my hands together in joy, and than it hit me: it must be over. The people were captured, the helicopters and cars blown up, the teleportation trap destroyed. Once Red and the army got here if they were going too, something I wasn't too clear on, the residents could taken away as the damage was cleared and the repair works began.

"We did it Vaporeon… it's over!" I said, letting the remote fall to the ground. Vaporeon, Pidgeot, Gligar and Gyarados all cheered, and I turned around to take in the scene: the helicopter wreckage the tank-boat had just drove over, an arm that remained poised on a building, another stuck on several trees. I looked over at Professor Oak's lab where this last bit had begun, stared at the helicopter that continued to burn, at the gap where the roof should be, at the person moving in the corner… Wait… corner… moving…

"Robert?" I called out, wondering if it was possible for him to have recovered, and I noticed Probopass and Mantine looking hopeful. But as I stepped forwards, the figure turned around, and I froze, feeling the happiness about this being over disappearing.

After fleeing from the crash, Mr Williamson had reappeared.

"Get the door," I shouted, and Vaporeon fired an Aurora Beam before Mr Williamson could move. The door was frozen shut, leaving the man who had caused all of this trapped. I moved determinedly forwards, raising my machine gun and firing it as I walked: I wanted this over, and that couldn't happen if he was still here. The bullets smashed into the wall but the man himself dived behind a metal table, and the bullets simply bounced off. All my Pokemon moved with me, Gyarados even swinging his tail and knocking the helicopter wreckage aside.

"Where's Professor Oak? Where's Robert's body?" I shouted as I stepped into the unstable building, firing the last of the bullets at the table.

"I was interrogating the old man in his back rooms, but one of the arms caused the roof to cave in and he fled. One of those women moved the traitor's body," Mr Williamson shouted, and I angrily threw the empty gun at the table.

"He isn't a traitor! You threatened him, there's a difference!" I shouted. The table was suddenly blasted backwards, and Mr Williamson leapt up holding his metal rod. Electricity was coming out from it, and I gasped as Vaporeon, Pidgeot, Gyarados and even Gligar were hit, blasted because and collapsing to the ground.

"You were blackmailed as well, but no one blackmailed you into killing Izzy!" The man hissed. "No one blackmailed you into coming here today!"

"STOP IT!" I screamed, watching as my Pokemon writhed in pain, trying to stop the memories of what happened to the other three coming back to them.

"NEVER!" Mr Williamson roared. "You've ruined everything! We have been planning this for years and in a few hours you've brought this plan crashing down! I will kill your Pokemon and make you watch, and than I will kill you, just like you killed her!" I wasn't sure how long it would until my Pokemon were seriously injured, but I had to do something.

"You loved her, didn't you?" I asked as my eyes skirted around the room, my hands reached for my other PokeBalls and the knives I had received. Cameron's hands dropped slightly as I spoke, and I knew I was having some sort of effect.

"We were both Pokemon Catchers and fell in love as we trained and worked together on our missions," he explained, his voice softer. "We would have stayed together if I hadn't been kicked out after I accidentally shot a rare wild Tauros that was going to trample her when we failed to catch it. Izzy was just as shocked as I was, and she promised to help me get revenge, but I said I would help her do that by getting to the top." I remembered hearing rumours from people that disliked Frostbite that she had simply gotten rid of everyone in front of her before taking over, and what he was saying seemed to prove that.

"After she got the top job, we decided we would make the company grand and I would make her a queen," Cameron continued. "I robbed several banks to help fund the company and stole weapons from the police and once from an army supply truck just in case. We began working on the adapting the boats with weaponry as well, but the company was struggling from the high demand and not enough money coming back. Our plan initially was to steal Pokemon simply to give them away, but than we thought we'd go bigger than that. I suggested we use the Pokemon as an army and fight back against the region, become true King and Queen. This would have been after a few months, once we had more helicopters, more boats and cars, more weapons and Pokemon, but we had to make do today."

"There's another reason we choose to target here, isn't there?" I asked, a knife clasped in my hands, but I had to get this question answered. After seeing the features of the rods and the tank-boat, I had a feeling this would be true. "You found a way to heal the illnesses of the people you gave your Pokemon to, didn't you? That way you would get recommended, people would keep coming back." Mr Williamson smiled at me, and I knew it was true.

"Smart boy, I can see why Izzy thought you would be an asset," he laughed. "There are brilliant scientists throughout our world, and I managed to contact two brilliant men in Sinnoh and Unova a few years ago when I was Catcher to make a special serum to help cure people. We got a pill that was a combination of Pokemon berries and medicines, normal human painkillers and drugs and powered up with the special current used to heal Pokemon in the centre. We began trialling them and they proved successful, but you already knew that fact, didn't you?" Mr Williamson added, laughing. I couldn't take this jab and threw the knife, and the smile was wiped off his face as it was embedded in his wrist. The rod fell to the ground, turning off, and I rushed to check on my Pokemon.

"Are you alright?" I called out, but none of them responded. I touched Vaporeon and found him to be very hot and unconscious, though no more serious injuries. I tested the others and got the same result, and was simply relieved that they hadn't been permanently injured, though they had clearly come close.

"Sorry," I whispered, and brought all four of them back. I turned back to Mr Williamson as he pulled the knife out of his hand, blood pouring down his arm, though I felt no sympathy. "I am going to guess that your medication was running low or something, so you planned to steal Oak's supplies and make your own?" Mr Williamson nodded angrily, wrapping his wrist around his shirt.

"Our stocks were low and the two scientists are busy with their own plans," he hissed. "Izzy and I planned to make our own and we were going to target here soon in order to keep people faithful to us when we took over, thinking of us as miracle workers, as heroes!"

"You're no hero!" I shouted back. "You deserve to be locked up for the rest of your miserable life! What you planned on doing was selfish, and you had no reason to do it!" Mr Williamson looked up at me, and I expected some sort of foul remark to come my way, but he simply began to laugh.

"You are a fool if you think you're the hero," he laughed. "Your endangered many lives through trying to stop me, and for what reason? You didn't have to do it, you didn't have to do anything. The police were on their way when you shot Izzy. You could have called the army and they would have arrived before I even had a chance to arrive, and they would have finished things much better. You came here because you wanted to clear your own conscience, or be the one to kill me or something! Whatever reason you came here, you wanted to do it for yourself, and that makes you just as selfish!" I was getting angry and I wanted to scream back at him, but deep down, part of me was saying he was right: I had come here to prove I wouldn't run away, and I had come because I wanted to be the one to stop them. The man continued to laugh as I paused, clearly glad he was twisted my words, and suddenly reached out,

"I am not going to let you leave," he hissed, his uninjured hand closing around the rod. "I will kill you and then I will teleport away, and there will be NOTHING anyone can do to stop me again!" But as he raised it, I threw my last weapons at him: the three PokeBalls cluttered into him and burst open, making Cameron yell and drop the rod. I watched painfully as Charizard, Electrode and Heracross formed, looking rather dazed and confused, but their faces lighting up when they saw me.

"Are you going to kill me?" Mr Williamson roared, sounding desperate. "How are you any better than me? You may be a Pokemon Catcher and think you're helping people, but all you were doing were funding our plans! Without you and all the others, none of this would have ever worked! You're an accessory to the death of all those guards at Resort Gorgeous and are responsible for every death here today!"

"Heracross, please grab him and than use Detect on yourself," I hissed, feeling empty inside. Heracross nodded, moving quickly for someone who had been trapped in a PokeBall for longer than necessary. I than gave a nod to Charizard and Electrode, telling them what move to use.

"SEE YOU IN HELL TREVOR ARCHER!" Cameron yelled. "I HOPE YOU FALL OFF YOUR HIGH RAPIDASH ONE OF THESE DAYS AND REALISE ALL OF THIS HAPPENED BECAUSE OF YOU, IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT!" I moved towards the gap where the exit should be, seeing people moving onto the streets and gathering around Leaf before I remembered a promise.

"By the way," I said, pausing but not bringing myself to turn around. "Robert says fuck you," and I continued walking. Cameron's screams continued until the Blast Burn and Explosion combination silenced him permanently. I dropped every weapon I had on me and collapsed onto my back, fists clenched and feeling tears well up as the last of the building collapsed behind me. I hated myself right now. I hated myself because I knew there was some truth to his words. I hated myself because I had sent those three Pokemon out for the simply act of murdering a man who did deserve it, but did they deserve to do my dirty work? I hated myself because of Robert, because of Selphy, because of Frostbite, because of Eric, because of every bloody thing that had happened.

And, most of all, I hated myself because I had failed myself.


	7. Home

**Home**

"_Good evening, and welcome to the six' o'clock news._

_In tonight's top story, the Pokemon Catchers, a charity designed to capture Pokemon for those unable to, has continued to collapse following yesterday's events, where Sevii Island Chief Isabella Frost and her lover Cameron Williamson launched an attack on the Fuchsia City Pal Park in an attempt to steal Pokemon. Their plan was foiled by Leaf Oak and Fuchsia gym leader Janine, along with an employer reportedly blackmailed into helping. This resulted in two helicopters being destroyed and Miss Frost being shot dead._

_Mr Williamson than launched an attack on Pallet Town and Professor Oak's laboratory, resulting in a dramatic battle that has left sixty percent of houses destroyed along with the lab, the injury of over thirty residents and the death of over fifty men hired to help Mr Williamson, who also died._

_Today, police and the army launched an investigation into the Sevii Island base, involving a full out raid on the Boon Island headquarters and the arrest over a dozen employees believed to be involved, though other media outlets are reporting that more people have been secretly taken into custody. Files, computers and a large arsenal of weaponry, including three boats loaded with secret machine guns and missile launchers. Pokemon Catcher groups across Kanto and Johto have agreed to cooperate and police are moving into their organizations as we speak. _

_We will now cut live to Pallet Town, where reporter Jackson Warren is standing by with both Leaf and Professor Samuel Oak as a clean up operation continues."_

"_Thank you David. Now, Professor, what do you –"_

I switched off the television, unable to take anymore.

I lay on my couch with a fish and chip dinner resting on my bare chest. I have been lying here all day, unable to bring myself to do anything else. All of my Pokemon were still at a special Pokemon Center that Professor Oak was opening to deal with seriously injured Pokemon, and though I had caused his lab to be completely destroyed, he had told me to send my Pokemon there as a way of saying thanks for things… not that I really deserved to be thanked, but my Pokemon deserved to be healed.

I had told everything Cameron had said about their plans to the police officers that arrived shortly after Leaf's Blastoise put out the blaze caused by the explosion, and than Oak had told me I could go. I saw Daisy as I left with a blanket around her shoulders being checked for injuries. I bade her farewell, and she gave me a hug, slipping a card with a number on it into my pocket, though I wasn't quite sure if I could date her or not. After being escorted by police boat to Boon Island, where they were going to start their investigation, I took Robert's body to his wife. She was grief stricken at first, but after I passed on his final words and explained how his plan allowed us all to survive, she began to calm down and said that was just like him before thanking me. Once again, someone was thanking me when I didn't really deserve it.

I arrived home in my small flat, with a kitchen and living area combined, a single bathroom and a single bedroom and a small space for my Vespa. I spent an hour in a shower, and than the rest of the night struggling to sleep, and watching TV, reading and attempting to eat couldn't clear my mind.

I knew Cameron was right. For some reason, I knew it was true: I didn't have to shoot Frostbite really, and I didn't have to get involved with Pallet Town. I had a feeling that his words had simply been insults designed to try and throw me off, but I couldn't shake them away, simply letting them eat away at me.

I had gone into this situation questioning myself, wondering if I was doing the right or wrong thing by stealing Pokemon to supposedly benefit others, but this moral dilemma was worse, much worse. I couldn't see how I would be able to ever forget the houses being crushed by the falling arms, the explosions, Mr Williamson's final screams, Frostbite's expression as she fell backwards into the water. I was reaching a point where I simply wanted to collapse from exhaustion, but I wasn't sure if my brain would stop running madly then… if it would ever stop running.

"Someone's doing some thinking."

"AHH!" I screamed, falling off the couch and landing on my dinner. I looked up as a figure walked out from near my front door, laughing slightly. I looked around for a weapon but couldn't see anything, and wondered if this was Cameron's revenge.

"Relax Trevor, I am not here to kill you," the man laughed, stepping into the light. He was wearing a simple brown trench coat and had brown hair that showed signs of going grey. I leapt to my feet, ignoring the fact I was shirtless and staring at this man.

"Who are you?" I yelled.

"Quite an impressive story what you've been through," the man said, ignoring the question. "Not just the past few days or this saga, but your entire life. Your brother's cancer, the troubles with your Pokemon… all very tragic, yet you've managed to pull through, and I like those who can pull through."

"Who are you?" I repeated, getting louder, and the man looked at me and smiled.

"My name is Looker, and I work for an organization," he explained. "You have very impressive skills: keeping cool under stress, managing to work out strategies, quickly adapting to using a firearm and other weapons, and ruthless murder, which is a personal favourite trait of mine."

"I am not a killer!" I screamed unintentionally, and my voice echoed, making the man, Looker, smirk.

"What's more, you have the training of a Pokemon Catcher, which is something just wonderful, as well as the experience in three high stress situations," he continued. "My superior has read your file and thinks you would be a worthy adversary to our team." I was taken back by this and I looked around, wondering if someone was going to leap out and yell 'SURPRISE'

"What… what the… what team?" I spluttered. "Are you a spy or something?" Looker simply stared at me smiling, and I wondered what was going on. "Look Looker, I don't care who you work for! I don't want to get involved in anything else! I've had enough drama over the past few weeks to fill a soap opera's storylines for a decade, and I don't want anymore!"

"Don't want, or can't take anymore?" Looker said, and I was once again shocked. "I understand killing people is a hard thing to do at first, but my group does not go around randomly shooting girl guides whenever they knock on our front door. We only harm those who truly deserve it and are at risk to the rest of the world. We stop people like Cameron Williamson and Isabella Frost, and you have shown you can stop them as well." Looker walked forwards and put his hands on my shoulders, staring at me with a glare that seemed to read my mind. "What's more, we need help looking for a certain man… a certain man who murdered someone in a cave fifteen years ago, and harmed several Pokemon shortly afterwards."

"You mean…," I whispered, and Looker nodded.

"Come and work for us, and you will help put away the man who ruined your journey, and quite frankly, ruined your life," Looker whispered. It was a lot to take in, and I collapsed backwards onto my couch, things rushing through my mind. I wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but one thought stood out amongst the rest: I had always wanted to do good, and I had always wanted to make my Pokemon and others were kept safe.

"I'll do it," I whispered, wondering if I was making the right choice or not. All I knew at this moment, as Looker clapped his hands with glee and rattled on about something I wasn't focusing on, I could feel the pressure lessening, the stress and the emotional pain beginning to fade away.

For the first time in weeks, I was pretty sure I was making the moral decision.

**I hope you have enjoyed the tale of Trevor Archer and the Pokemon Catchers. It has been a long time coming to reach these point, but I am satisfied that I achieved what I set out to do and that the story has hopefully been captivating to you all. Look out for Trevor's appearances in other stories in my world as he embarks down this new road set out for him in the final. Thanks to all those who have read this and gave me their feedback on it - I hope you enjoyed the ride.**


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